There was something always peaceful about gathering up the ingredients and tools one would need to make something.  It was like being productive with something that wasn’t a day to day activity, for most people.  Akiva was almost always in this kitchen when she was home, there or the sitting room, just lounging about with Lady, Gordon, and occasionally Tabitha, who would sit right out of reach and sometimes give her a look that could kill, but would be there regardless.  It was nice to have something to do now though, something that she could spend part of Saturday doing.

When all of the ingredients were laid out, the measuring cups and bowls laying out next to them – in sets based on colors and styles (enough for everyone – Akiva had not realized how much of a pack rat she was with these types of things until she actually tried to pull out all the sets), and baking sheets sat at the end of something that looked like an assembly line.  Shortbread dipped in chocolate would be ridiculously easy for them to make and a snack that would hold up much longer than anything else they might bring with them.  She even had extra tins for them to take things in.  Really, she thought this would be an ace way of making a simple gesture to include them all. 

She had invited Dree to join as well, though wasn’t sure what he was up to at the moment.  She worried about him sometimes, but she knew he was probably fine.  She’d have to remember to make some extras and have them out for when he got home. 

Donning the apron Adon had gotten her for Hanukkah, Akiva was ready to spend another day in the kitchen.  It was a sanctuary of sorts for everything that had gone on, the things that she could not really explain and the adjustments that had to be made to their lives, not that Akiva entirely minded.  It surely made the house more interesting, and with visitors coming now, she was hardly ever alone – Sasha being a staple of the home, though he was quiet, and some of his friends dropping by, most notably Ferguson Amherst, an amicable young man who had shown some interest in spending time in the kitchen with her. 

So, when she had owled Fauna, finally apologizing for the lack of contact lately, she invited her over to make some cookies to bring back to school with her and had extended the invitation to Fergie, as he liked to be called, through Sasha.  She hoped that Sasha would also come out and enjoy doing something that might lift his spirits a little, and each could take whatever they made (plus a good amount of what Akiva made) back to school with them, having some treats for the beginning of term. 

She did realize that it was technically the Sabbath and she shouldn’t have really been cooking, but being far less conservative about her religious convictions, she would make the exception for the last day before the Hogwarts train departed from Platform 9 ¾.  With everything set up, Akiva walked from the kitchen to the sitting room and looked up the stairs, seeing the guest room door closed.  “Sasha,” she called up in a gentle, but loud enough voice for him to hear, “If you want to come down, your friend Fergie should be here soon.  And you should put on something you aren’t afraid to get dirty.” 

With an almost inaudible tick, the occasional wet snowflake hit the outside of the window pane before sliding down to nestle amongst its brothers mounded in the corner of the molding.  Despite the light snowfall, Sasha's window was opened a crack.  The cold draft seeped through the opening, breathing the sharp, biting cold over his face.  With the window closed, there was nothing but a stagnant warmth in the room that seemed to only help that festering numbness settle.  The bite of the cold air against his face gave him something to focus on; like the pea sandwiched between the princess' mattresses, it was impossible to ignore. 

It was only his face that felt the cold.  He lay curled up on his side, his face at the window with his comforter pull up to his waist.  Baldur lay flat on his side, the length of the shepherd's back curled against Sasha's front.  That position had become common place over the last week; he usually only left it when he had visitors or for meals or other unavoidable social engagements.  But, this was the last day Sasha could hide like this.  Tomorrow it was back to Hogwarts.  And back to pretending everything was normal.  Strange how he'd once dreaded going home for that very same reason. 

Home. 

Sasha's chest tightened and his eyes clenched shut as he hugged his arms around the dog's chest.  The movement roused the Shepherd from sleep and his tail thumped lazily against the bed.  The dog tilted his head back and gently licked Sasha's cheek.  Sasha wasn't ready and he knew it, despite his repeated assurances he wanted to return to school.  Admitting otherwise felt like it was far too much like admitting defeat but he was terrified of the prospects of returning to school.  Nothing made sense anymore.  He wasn't sure he recognized himself anymore and now he was supposed to walk into a place where six weeks ago his biggest concern had been a kiss?  Where, for six weeks, a myriad of rumors had been festering? 

Akiva's voice called up the stairs.  Sasha might have been inclined to ignore it - to pretend he'd been asleep - if Baldur hadn't gotten to his feet and hoped off the bed, leaving Sasha more exposed to the cold air.  He pushed himself upright on the bed and wiped his face on his eyes on his shirt sleeve before pulling a sweater over his head.  After a detour to the bathroom to wash his face and put a wet comb through his hair before following the Shepherd into the kitchen. 

In the event the face washing hadn't chased all the evidence of crying from his face, he kept his head tilted forward, only letting his eyes scan the room.  "Fergie's coming over?" He sounded slightly startled.  As he felt the warmth rise in his cheeks, he quickly crossed the kitchen to, needlessly, wash his hands.  "I - what for?"

There was something unmistakably sad about Sasha – and for the past week, Akiva had tried her best to make him comfortable.  She had even bent a bit of a no more animals rule to allow him to have his companion, Baldur with him.  It proved to at least make the boy a little more comfortable with being around and it settled Akiva to know he wasn’t completely miserable.  She felt terribly, a lot had happened to the boy, and her heart went out to him.  Whenever she thought about it, she always glanced down at her wrist, moving one of the bangles Dree had bought her out of the way, remembering how emotional and horrifying that experience had been. 

Sasha was an orphan now, and though she had not expected to actually have to take him in, particularly when Dree suggested it was highly unlikely, she did not hesitate when he had needed a place to stay, better than becoming a complete ward of the state.  At least here he could have something of a “normal” home, with meals and interaction.  It was uncommon for him to spend any good length of time out of his room, but Akiva made sure that he was always downstairs and eating – she was finally getting the hand of cooking vegetarian meals for him and having something always ready for lunch when she and Dree were at work.  It gave her someone else to care for, which was part of what made Akiva tick, and also part of what she thought might help the boy along a little – he needed a support structure. 

Jacoba had been a fantastic help, visiting and giving Akiva information about her brother.  It all served to help make the boy more comfortable, and for a fifteen year old, he was dreadfully quiet and listless, though that was to be expected.  Moving away from the stairs, she would let him come down in his own time and returned to the kitchen, shooing Gordon off the counter near the coffee pot and routinely pulling out two cans of cat food – one could not feed one cat without the other, and unceremoniously filled both dishes.  Gordon ran for his – Tabitha, for the time being, was nowhere to be seen.  But, she would come, she always did. 

Satisfied that everything was being taken care of, Kiva glanced over as she heard footfalls coming down the stairs, first the shepherd and then Sasha.  He was looking downward again, cast low and apparently trying to hide something.  Now, Akiva may not have been the most observant person, but she could tell when someone was upset and when it was becoming routine, she did not hesitate to assume he had been crying.  She did not hold it against him, and as he washed his hands, she moved to the counter near him, pulling down a kettle from a shelf – she was in the mood for a cup of tea and thought perhaps Sasha would benefit as well. 

“He wanted to learn how to bake cookies,” Akiva looked over at him and smiled, “and you two seem to be close, so I invited him over.  I thought maybe you would want to help – get out of that room for a little bit and spend some time downstairs.”  It was a simple answer, something she thought was fairly thoughtful, and moved to the sink as soon as he finished, putting water in the kettle, “Would you care for a cup?” she looked at him, filling the kettle more than necessary anyway, and put it atop one of the burners on the oven. 

The burner clicked on, lighting up underneath the smooth, shiny surface, and Kiv stepped away, letting the water boil, surveying the kitchen one more time.  “I also invited –“ she was interrupted, however, by the sound of a knock on the door, “I’ll get it, hold on a second!” and moved quickly from the kitchen and to the front door, knowing there were several locks to undo and charms to subdue after looking through the peephole and confirming the guest was indeed one they wished to have in the house.  This confirmation given, Akiva started the process, which she had become dreadfully good at and smiled as a greeting when the door swung open. 

---

It’s open to either Fauna or Fergie showing up at this point, whoever wants to/gets here first!

Fauna waited outside Akiva's door, rubbing her hands together for warmth. She still needed new mittens. But that would have to wait. She peered into the small window above the door, stamping the snow off her boots in anticipation while shadows of figures flickered inside. Fauna was thrilled that Akiva had invited her over. It was her first time at her house, and they hadn't seen each other as much as they thought they would during the winter break. Fauna was also thrilled to get away from her mother, who she'd been arguing with constantly.

Her mum complained that she wasn't working at the store or helping out around the house enough, unlike other breaks. So much had been going on! The mixer, drama with friends, Devlin's arrest, and just trying to have a social life all contributed to tension in the Blake home. But Devlin's arrest had been the biggest issue as of late. Her mum didn't want her dating someone who had gotten into that kind of trouble. As much as Fauna tried to explain to her what had really happened, she would have none of it, and was convinced Fauna's detentions at school, and all the other problems in her life had one source: Devlin Matthews.

A fine time to turn into a rebellious teenager, Fauna mimicked her mother in her head. When the door flung open, Fauna smiled in relief, letting her worries fade away.

"Akiva!" She exclaimed, bounding forward and giving her a hug. "Thank you for inviting me. My mum's driving me absolutely barmy," she shook her head, then bent slightly to greet the dogs that had come running to the door.

Fauna took off her coat, removed her shoes, and all the other winter necessities before following Akiva into the kitchen.

There, she found Sasha. She stopped in her tracks and went wide-eyed, glancing at Akiva and then back at Sasha again. Oh Merlin, she was such an idiot! Fauna should have guessed that Sasha would be staying with Dreogan after... everything.

She'd also mentioned her mum without thinking... oh hell.

Fauna stuck her hands in her pockets. "Sasha... hi," she said softly, glancing at Akiva as if she didn't know what to do.

What was she supposed to say? What was the right thing to say? Fauna didn't exactly consider him a friend anymore, but she felt horrible for him, and realized he must need people around who cared. Perhaps that was why Akiva had invited her. But looking at her track record with the boy, Fauna was the worst person to offer help!

They hadn't had a real conversation since November, when Sasha had stumbled upon her lesson with Tamis and they'd shared some harsh words. The incident in December with Creepy McCreepster didn't quite count, because- and her face flushed with the thought- they'd been under the influence of happy powder. She'd skillfully avoided him during the New Year's eve party at Sophie's, unaware at the time that he'd just lost his parents.

So now, now she just felt awkward. And dumb. And speechless.

This was not a good start to the day!

Akiva was so glad to see Fauna when she opened the door all the way.  She looked well, her normal quirky self, a little exasperated, but it was the day before going back to school and it could be expected.  Stress of getting back to Hogwarts and going into one’s last semester was probably unbearable!  Though, Akiva would not mention this, as she had no personal experience in that – her last semester had been unrealized and completely a surprise until the decision to stay home had been made – at least Fauna was getting the chance to finish everything up. 

It would be nice to see her off in a way too, she had a very soft spot for the girl who had found her in that house, and being launched at, Akiva opened her arms with a bright smile and laughed as she was hugged tightly.  “Fauna, I’m so glad you could make it!” she exclaimed with a bright laugh.  They hadn’t seen one another that much and it was nice to have something fun to do, to keep everyone busy with something a little more cheerful than what seemed to be going on outside of the house.

There was also the matter of getting Sasha interacting with people of his own age and doing things outside of the room.  He might have been virtually locked in the house by decree of the ministry, but that didn’t mean he had to be completely miserable.  She tried very hard to at least make things comfortable, but sometimes it got hard.  “Come on,” she smiled, releasing the girl from a hug and motioning her toward the kitchen, “we’re just waiting for Fergie to get here…” she did not think much of anything until they actually got into the kitchen. 

It seemed that as soon as Fauna noticed Sasha that the tone dramatically changed. It wasn’t surprising; it was hard to figure out how to act around someone who had gone through so much, but the way Fauna looked at her with such a confused and… discouraged sort of face, had something happened?  Perhaps there was something Akiva was missing here, or Fauna just did not know how to act at all. 

Whatever the case, Akiva moved to the counter and leaned against it with a forced smile, hoping that perhaps it would some infect the two and create a more positive and pleasant environment, “I’m guessing you two know one another – Hogwarts isn’t that big,” she offered outloud, moving about – glad to hear the tea pot start steaming – a low whistle, “Oh! Do either of you want a cup?"

"Bake cookies?"  Sasha looked up from the sink towards Akiva, blinking in confusion.  Ferguson was coming over for a cooking lesson? That just seemed ... odd.  Though it did explain the array of cooking implements set out on the counter.  Sasha tugged the kitchen towel from it's hook by the sink and dried his hands before meticulously folding it and draping it back in its spot.  Then he heard the second part of Akiva's explanation and he stopped, cold. 

What did she mean by 'you two seem close'?  Surely, she couldn't know about ... any of that.  Whatever that was.  It certainly couldn't be obvious.  After all, there wasn't really anything to be obvious about.  They were friends.  Good friends - which was probably all Akiva meant by 'close friends.'  Certainly she couldn't know about Fergie's ... um ... crush.  It wasn't that obvious, after all.  Was it?  But, no, it appeared that wasn't the case; it was just acknowledging they were friends and trying to get Sasha away from brooding in his room.  He nodded in affirmation - both to the planned activity and the offer of tea just as Akiva turned to answer the door.   Only once she'd moved away did Sasha let out the long, anxious sigh he'd been holding.

Left on his own for a few moments, Sasha retrieved his mobile from his pocket and flipped it open.  She's invited Fergie to bake cookies he typed into the text message before slipping the phone back in his pocket.  But, it wasn't Fergie's voice that filtered in from the front door.  It was ... Fauna Blake's?  What on earth was she doing here?  And, more importantly, how could Sasha slip by her without being noticed.  An especially tricky feat when Sasha wasn't supposed to just go out on his own. 

He was trapped.  Apparently to listen to Fauna complain about her mother being annoying.  Maybe she could mention how proud Professor Greyfriar was of her for dating his trouble-making son while she was at it.  Guess that was just the accessory one needed for their new rebellious image. 

"Allo."  Texting his sister had proven to be a particularly wise idea.  The slight vibrating of the phone in his pocket was a convenient distraction from the awkward greeting.  He tugged it back out and quickly glanced over the response: You're baking me cookies?  How thoughtful!  Do you need Oma's recipe for Vanillekipferl?  I'll pick up my dozen at dinner.  I don't think I told Akiva I'd be by but, since you're off to school tomorrow.  Will you give her the head's up?

When he looked up from his phone, Fauna was still there, watching him with an obvious uncertainty.   "Ja, we know each other," Sasha confessed reluctantly.  In response to the second offer for tea, Sasha glanced at Akiva and shook his head.  "I - um...Baldur probably needs to go out.  It has been a while."  Actually, it had only been two hours.  Hopefully, though, Akiva wasn't keeping track.  Of course, he really wasn't supposed to go outside alone but maybe - just maybe - she wasn't keeping track of that, either.  That, however, was less likely.  Especially after the New Year's incident.  So, as if he were simply a vulnerable toddler, Sasha added with a sigh and almost a plea, "I won't go out of the front yard.  I'll just be a few minutes." 

He started quickly towards the front door, the Shepherd at his heels, fully expecting Akiva to stop him.  In front of Fauna.  Because there was always room for things to get more humiliating. 

If things were not awkward enough, Akiva looked as Sasha took out his mobile.  She had noticed that with another magical person in the house that her mobile was not functioning quite as well as it had before.  The extra magic was enough to throw things a little off kilter – like getting calls a bit late or missing them entirely, sometimes text messages came in slightly funky – odd characters and things.  She supposed if his phone worked, that was a plus, considering he was stuck inside of the house.

After New Year’s, it had become clear that Akiva and Dreogan had to keep an eye on him even more than they thought they might.  She supposed it was apt training for having children of their own, though jumping straight into it without much background had been hard.  From what Dree had said, the boy was going to be good at following what he was supposed to do, but then again, things happened that changed the course of one’s life dramatically, including what kinds of decisions one made as well.  He had been shaken, it was true, and it could disrupt anyone’s life.

So, she looked at him sympathetically as he seemed so anxious to go outside, declining the tea he had previously accepted – she’d pour him a cup anyway.  Looking to Fauna, the young woman had those big eyes and she nodded, still chewing on one fingernail – why on Earth were they so nervous around one another?  She hoped nothing had happened at Howarts… Shaking her head, she got a muffled “Sure… thanks,” from behind her hand, the blue eyes still flickering between the coffee pot, Akiva, the dogs, and Sasha. 

Rifling through the cabinet to get mugs out, Akiva glanced over at Sasha, trying to do two things at once.  He wanted to bring the dog out, she couldn’t remember the last time that had happened, and frowning slightly, she knew she should have been by the window watching him, or even outside with him, but he looked so desperate and his voice was thin, threaded into a plea that she could not ignore, particularly looking at her with those eyes.  He was taller than her, but he looked small at that moment and Akiva sighed, glancing at the thin, gold watch around her wrist. 

“You have five minutes,” she warned in a voice that, for Akiva, was quite stern.  “Could you take Lady too?” she added, knowing full well that her collar, at least, was charmed to not go beyond the borders of the magical barrier set out.  She would yap and bark should Sasha try to get away, and it would just be disappointing her and breaking any trust she had with him whatsoever at this point.  She thought he was a good boy, he gave off that impression, but he could be misguided at times.  In this time, she had managed to put out three cups with teabags inside, pouring the hot water in them.  They would steep while Sasha was outside, and be ready for consumption once he came in. 

Motioning for Fauna to be quiet, as soon as the young man left the door, Akiva moved from the kitchen to glance out the window, just to make sure.  The boy had been quite the target, and she didn’t want him to be uncomfortable, but she also didn’t want him to get snatched on her watch.  She’d scurry back to the kitchen as soon as he was headed back toward the door, but for the time being, she just wanted to check to make sure he was alright. 

She crossed her arms across her chest and looked over at Fauna briefly, “So, what has your mother been doing?” she talked as she watched the somewhat awkward young man who had come into their home so suddenly.  She felt terribly for him, really, and just wanted things to work, even a little bit, didn’t mean she had to neglect her other guest, however. 

GModding approved by Elle.

When Sasha whipped out his cell phone to avoid talking to her (a common muggle avoidance tactic that she'd seen in action many times- just not from him!), Fauna's heart sank. He made up some excuse about taking the dogs out, and Fauna glanced down, then at the teapot, as Akiva told him he had five minutes.

Sasha didn't look so good. His eyes were red and his face pale. Fauna tried to tell herself that he just needed some air and that it had nothing to do with her, but her mental pep talk fell on deaf ears.

Fauna hovered by Akiva, feeling like she should offer to give her a hand, but her mind was buzzing and she couldn't help but glance out the window like Akiva had. Merlin, Fergie was coming too? Why hadn't Akiva told her? Fauna would have asked to get together with her for lunch, or figured out something else if she'd known what she'd be facing today.

Her discomfort was so great that it was easy to feel slightly irritated. But a rush of guilt replaced it when Akiva asked what was going on with her mother.

Fauna's face flushed as she glanced up guiltily. She had a mum. And she suddenly felt ashamed to even talk about her problems when they all seemed so trivial in comparison to Sasha's.

"Nothing. It's no big deal," she insisted quickly, running a hand through her hair.

"Um... is Sasha doing... okay? I mean..."

Fauna stared at Akiva with a nervous, upset expression. "Are you sure he wants me here? After everything... our fight in November. The creepy Kronos thing earlier this month. I just... make everything worse with him."

She didn't intend to sound so pitiful or lost. But she was contemplating walking out now, while she still had the chance, before this situation could become more awkward. Fauna had been looking forward to baking cookies! Now it felt like one of Snark's detentions. Which brought up another pang of guilt, since Akiva had been nice enough to invite her and had probably expected her to act more maturely.

 Fergie did not exactly feel at home in the kitchen. He'd never done anything more culinarily complicated than pour himself a glass of juice, and to be honest he'd spent far more time in other people's kitchens (even Akiva's, in the short time he'd come to know the woman) than his own. So he wasn't sure what to expect when it came to baking cookies. All he could do was hope that it was easier than potions, which from what he understood was sort of like potions, and which he was absolute rubbish at.

 But watching other people cook had turned out to be fascinating. Miss Katz seemed to be particularly skilled in this area, and over the past week he'd enjoyed watching her. It was sort of baffling, how the ingredients fit together. Seperately they weren't usually particularly tasty, but throw them together in the right order and the right quantity and the results were delicious. This was a puzzle he was definitely interested in seeing if he could unlock.

 That, however, hadn't been his only reason for accepting the invitation. He needed an excuse to run into Sasha. Fergie hadn't seen or heard from the Ravenclaw since the bonfire, not quite daring to be the first one to make contact after what had transpired before Sasha'd been yanked away from the party. But this... this was a legitimate excuse. He'd been expressly invited. And there was no way he was turning that opportunity down.

 As he approached the by now familiar house, the Slytherin's steps momentarily slowed as he caught sight of Sasha playing fetch with the dogs in the front yard. Fergie felt the butterflies starting up already, tumbling and fluttering through his stomach, and he knew he was blushing. Hopefully, however, that could be mistaken as a result of being out in the icy winter air. Because there was only one way that Fergie knew of to get over this crippling awkwardness that was threatening to descend upon them, and that was to be the Anti-Awkward. He wasn't going to pretend nothing had happened, he was just going to refuse to let it interfere with things.

 Fergie ran a hand over his hair to smooth it down as he approached the Ravenclaw and his canine companions. "My, aren't you looking handsome today!" Fergie exclaimed, but not to Sasha. Instead, he at first focused his attention on Baldur, looking down at the dog and reaching out to pet his furry head. It had taken Fergie a few days, but he was slowly getting used to the animal. He was at least comfortable enough to pet the dog, and no longer fear that his fingers would be taken off. It helped that, unlike Sophie's Thor, Baldur showed no signs of wanting to lick his face off.

 Then, after he'd greeted the shepherd, Fergie looked up at Sasha. "You're not looking so bad either, I guess," he offered lightly, fluttering his eyelashes and grinning up at the blond. It was a little more bold than he would have risked a few days ago, but... Well, he was curious to see how the other boy would take it. And, despite the slight redness around Sasha's eyes, it was perfectly true. "Hi. Miss me?"


outfit

Like some kid who'd just bought himself a few extra minutes of play before taking his bath, Sasha had been privileged five minutes of freedom.  Of course, it was five minutes or nothing so there was no point in arguing.  With a curt nod to accept the conditions of his brief 'release,' he grabbed a tennis ball before slipping out the door with both dogs at his heels.  Lady, he knew, couldn't leave the yard.  Providing Baldur with the exercise he needed while remaining within Sasha's prescribed boundaries was much easier with games of fetch when the Shepherd wasn't confined by a charmed collar.

Sasha, himself, couldn't - and wouldn't - leave the yard.  He was well aware of the imposition his sudden appearance in Dreogan and Akiva's lives posed.  He wasn't looking to cause trouble; he didn't ... he knew how to follow directions and he knew how to take care of himself.  But, he wasn't used to parenting - he wasn't used to being, well, dependent.  Not in this sense at least.  He was also used to quite a bit more freedom than this.  If ... if things were normal, right now Sasha would be heading back from his grandmother's where he would have spent the holidays traveling around Europe and having free rein of their thirty-five thousand acres. 

Sneaking out for the party had been a ... well, Sasha hesitated to call it a mistake.  He knew he shouldn't have gone; he knew it had terrified Dreogan but he also knew he needed to go.  He'd needed to see other students before finding himself on that train tomorrow.  A test run of sorts.  It had been a necessary evil. 

And, if he was being honest, he didn't really understand what big threat was still lingering out there.  Everyone was acting like there was some big boogie man out there preying on him.  Which, there wasn't.  Sasha ... knew that.  The killer was dead ... Sasha was well aware of that.  But, everyone was acting like it wasn't over, like there was still worse out there.  There wasn't.  There couldn't be.  Kronos had promised he'd never hurt him but Sasha knew better than using that as defense for sneaking out to the New Year's Eve party. 

The sable Shepherd noticed Ferguson first and loped towards him, tennis ball in mouth and tail wagging.  During the Slytherin's frequent visits over the course of the last week (had it really only been a week since Sasha had come to live here?), Ferguson had noticeably become far more comfortable with the dog.  The dog stood quietly, his ears flicking back out of the way of the boy's hand as the visitor pet him but, after a few pets, he turned and trotted back to Sasha, dropping the ball at the Ravenclaw's feet. 

There was a time, not long ago, when Sasha would have been perfectly oblivious to the flirtatious manner of the other boy's greeting.  The eyelash batting, the not-so-subtle (and, Sasha was well aware, given his previous leaky-eye session, largely misplaced) compliment would have been attributed to peculiar personality quirks.  Which were, naturally, entirely unrelated to Sasha.  Now, for better or worse, he knew better.  And for a while (between that time not long ago and some time more recently), any sign of flirting from the Slytherin was unnerving.

Now, the ... attention ... from Fergie was still confusing and slightly unsettling but for different reasons.  Mostly due to the fact that Sasha didn't find the attention entirely (or even at all) unwelcome.  The color that rose in the boy's cheeks and the awkward glance at his shoes were all too telling.  Though, he still was entirely reluctant for anyone else to be aware of this ... inexplicable development.   He cast a nervous glance towards the house, confident they were being watched.  And, that his time was probably going to be up, soon. Another awkward detail about that party. 

"Allo," he offered in return, looking back towards Fergie.  He was in no real rush to go inside and he hadn't grabbed a watch. So, five minutes might not have passed in entirety, yet.  "You ... look nice, too."  The blush deepened slight and Sasha licked his lips as he nodded his head.  It had only been two days, of course, but he supposed he had missed Fergie.  Not that he blamed him for not coming by.  It had all been...

"I'm ... I'm sorry about the other night.  The, you know, party?  I know I kind of ruined it."  He didn't specify in what way he'd ruined it.  Though, he did confess, "I probably should have told you about the whole ... house arrest thing."  Of course, Sasha had known, if he had, Fergie might have changed his mind about the whole thing.  It had been easy to avoid the topic before New Year's - it wasn't like Sasha had really been looking to go out much before.  "But, I'm ... probably supposed to go in soon.  I was -"  He hesitated.  If he admitted he'd been avoiding Fauna, it might scare Fergie away.  Which would leave Sasha alone to, apparently, bake cookies with Fauna.  "- only given five minutes." 

It was hard to restrict someone’s freedom.  Akiva didn’t like that she had to do that to Sasha, and most certainly didn’t like that she had to give him time limits and things, but the conditions were what they were and she was risking something just by letting him outside by himself.  Naturally, she was going to watch from the window, but he didn’t need to know that.  His quick game of fetch with Baldur bounding after the tennis ball and Lady going as far as she could before stopping on the border. 

As she watched the young man look so… listless, tossing the ball and watching the dog, Akiva felt a pang in her chest.  She really did feel bad about this whole sitaution, it wasn’t fair to him, but it was how it was.  Being that he was a recent target and that Kronos man was still on the loose, despite his complete belief that the man wasn’t going to try anything else, no one else was as convinced, least of all Akiva who still looked over her shoulder when  she was walking alone.

Glancing at Fauna, she expected to be hearing about how awful her mum was being – everyone was entitled to that frustration, but instead, the young woman back peddaled and seemed to be looking out the window with a similiarly uncomfortable and sympathetic expression, aksing about him doing ‘okay’ and going on to explain her meaning. 

Akiva glanced over at her with a somewhat surprised expression, not imagining Fauna really fighting with anyone and the whole Kronos thing… she had completely forgotten that Fauna had been present.  Shaking her head, she hoped she could dissuade Fauna from feeling unwelcome.  “You won’t,” Akiva assured her, “he needs people around – to get him to interact with anybody is a step toward making things better.” 

She drifted off at the last syllable, hoewver, as she noticed the figure of a young man appearing from the corner of the yard, unmistakbly, Ferguson Amherst, affectionately called Fergie.  He was a very polite and decent young man, from what Akiva understood, a pureblood and fond of Saasha.  She had suspicions about the nature of his friendship with the young ravenclaw, but Sasha brightened up when he was around and he brought a little vibrance out in him. 

Even if it was mostly unnoticable, Akiva caught glimmers – the watching, the smiling, the things she did when she had first started to really like Dree, blush and giggle – though she gave Fergie the credit of being far more graceful than giggling.  But, that nonwithstanding, now that Sasha wasn’t alone in the yard and there was another person with the capability to call for help beyond a bark, Akiva turned to Fauna and smiled, “We should get things set up – you know, since everyone is here, and I’ll pour another cup for Fergie.” 

She walked back into the kitchen with confidence, hoping that it would give off an air of total assurance that this would go well and removed the tea bags from the three already brewed cups, getting out another mug for herself – she’d wait while the kids could take theirs if they watned them.  Glancing at her watch, she knew Sasha would be in soon, invariably with both dogs and Fergie.  “I thought shortbread would be a good choice to make,” she said without looking at Fauna, more concentrating on her mug, “it’s easy and holds up very well.”  At this point she looked over at her, “And you can tell me about your mother later.”   

"I guess so," Fauna mumbled with a shrug when Akiva said that Sasha needed to be around people to start feeling better. Wasn't the poor boy going to face lots and lots of people on the train tomorrow? Why did she feel like even then, she and Sasha would have avoided each other?

Fergie had arrived, too. Watching the pair from behind Akiva, Fauna noticed how their body language was friendly, comfortable. Though she completely missed any flirtatious signs between the boys, she knew that Sasha and Fergie had come to the New Year's party together, and that Peeves had been singing that stupid song about kissing in the loo all over Hogwarts.

Fauna glanced away, overwhelmed by regret and unease. She couldn't help but wonder what Fergie had done right and what she had done wrong. Jealousy reared up, but not the romantic kind. She envied their simple camaraderie and hated the idea that she'd driven a friend like Sasha away.

And it would only get worse when the boys came back inside. Still, Fauna offered Akiva a tiny smile and followed her into the kitchen, where she sipped at her tea and glanced around the room.

"Shortbread sounds good," she murmured, not feeling all too picky. Whatever Akiva made, Fauna liked. She just hoped she hadn't picked up her grandmother's habit of burning everything.

Fauna nodded, grateful that Akiva offered to listen to her complain about her mum later. Her problems could most definitely wait. "Anything I can do first?" She asked, setting down her tea and going to the sink to wash her hands.

 Fergie held his breath and waited for Sasha's eyes to widen or for the other boy to take a couple steps back, have some kind of minor freak out.  He knew it was inevitable. What had happened at the bonfire had been a fluke, the result of someone slipping rum into the punch, and the panic that would soon surface on the Ravenclaw's face would prove that...

 Except there never was any panic. Sasha just blushed and looked down at the ground, like he would have during pretty much any other conversation. Fergie tilted his head to the side and considered him, curiously. Huh. That was unexpected.

 But nice. Really nice. The Slytherin could have been totally off base here, but it seemed like... Sasha hadn't minded the flirting. And, maybe, with that return compliment - that couldn't just be politeness could it? Not in this situation. Not with everything that had happened. Maybe the Ravenclaw was even flirting back, just a teeny, tiny, miniscule bit. Not that it mattered either way - the butterflies in the Slytherin's stomach went into overdrive regardless, fluttering around at warp speeds. The grin on his face widened and settled into something more natural and decidedly more bouyant.

 "I'm glad you think so," Ferguson told the other boy, taking a small, single step closer and looking up at him a little shyly as he admitted, "I sort of picked this sweater out in the hopes of impressing you." And he'd spent a ridiculous amount of time wavering on the selection, too. In the end he'd even had to call in Sophie for an emergency consultation, not quite trusting his own judgement. He'd been too nervous to choose on his own.

 Oh, right. The house arrest thing. Fergie still couldn't quite believe it, or any of the rest of the stuff that had happened to the other boy lately. It was the sort of thing that happened in books, not in real life. And not to people you were close to. "Yes, you probably should have told me. But I can understand why you didn't." He shrugged, and grimaced sympathetically. Having to ask permission to go out in the yard for five minutes, that couldn't be easy."It's pretty cold out here, anyway."

 Fergie reached out to slip his hand into the Ravenclaw's and twine their fingers together, leading the way to the door. Instead of going inside right away, however, he turned and leaned his back against it. "You didn't ruin anything, by the way."  He shook his head with a smirk. "I mean, I don't know about you-" Fergie tried to ignore the way his heart was anxiously pounding, focusing on remaining at least outwardly confidant. "-but there are certain moments of the evening I wouldn't mind reenacting sometime." Ferguson was fairly certain that Sasha could figure out exactly which moments he meant. The other boy wasn't a Ravenclaw for nothing, after all.

When, four and a half years ago, the awkward and nervous little toe-headed kid had climbed up onto the Hogwarts Express from an empty, parentless train platform, he'd had no idea what to expect.  And, while he was quite capable of being obedient, he'd always been an adventurous and independent kid.  Even with those traits, though, coming to Hogwarts when his parents didn't even have a clue where he was going, had been an immense leap of faith. 

Walking into that grandiose Great Hall for the first time, Sasha hadn't known the differences between Ravenclaw and Slytherin or Hufflepuff.  He hadn't known that the grubbiest looking hat he'd ever seen was going to search his soul and try to catalogue him.  His own obliviousness, apparently, hadn't impeded the hat in the slightest.  The hat had barely brushed Sasha's white-blond hair before it had croaked to life and sent him to Ravenclaw.

Sasha was, without question, a true Ravenclaw.  He demonstrated all the classic desire and thirst for knowledge and understanding.  On the flip side, the young man always found it incredibly unsettling and unnerving when he wasn't able to wrap his head around something and fully understand it.  He did not like confusion at all; it didn't sit well with him. And there seemed to be no limits to the confusion surrounding Ferguson Amherst. 

He knew what he should be thinking about all of this and back before everything else, those thoughts had been the long and short of it.  But, since then, Sasha's world had been violently picked up and turned upside down.  It felt like no part of his life had been spared; everything had changed.  Yet, despite everything - despite all the changes - Fergie had managed to remain a constant.  Someone he knew he could trust and rely upon.  And, as evidenced by the party, seek comfort from.  Even now, in the midst of everything - even with the other boy's obvious flirting - Sasha had come to realize there were still very few people with whom Sasha felt as at ease with as he did with Fergie. 

Which was all well and good.  Fergie was a good friend.  But, Sasha knew that didn't really explain why, rather than making him uneasy like it would have done a few weeks ago, knowing Fergie's thoughts in selecting that sweater made his blush darken and a slight grin play across his lips.  It very well may have been the first in weeks.  "Oh.  Alright."  The verbal response Sasha managed to produce was much less profound in comparison to his body language.  "It's all kind of embarrassing," he offered, even though Fergie had admitted he understood why Sasha hadn't told him about the house arrest.  Yes, the topic of his house arrest and why he hadn't been forthcoming about it was marginally easier to put words to than the sweater Fergie had chosen largely for Sasha's benefit. 

Of course, Fergie would find the cold a worthy motivation for heading inside.  He didn't know about the fourth member of their baking party.  Feeling slightly guilty and obligated to forewarn the Slytherin, Sasha almost opened his mouth to say something when Fergie's fingers slipped between his. Reflexively, Sasha tensed slightly and he cast a quick glance towards the front window of the house but there was no sign of movement (or observers) behind the white curtains.  This was, most certainly, on the far side of that line of appropriate and inappropriate physical contact.  It was still entirely baffling but it wasn't unwelcome.  Or unpleasant.  Sasha exhaled long and slow through his nose, his muscles loosening as his hand closed lightly around Fergie's, his own fingers settling gently against the back of Fergie's hand. 

Even if Sasha had wanted to pretend he didn't know the moments Fergie was referring to, he probably couldn't have done so convincingly enough to keep his heart from pounding against his chest.  Whether its hyperactivity was due to nerves, uncertainty or, perhaps, a little touch of excitement, its pounding against his ribcage made it impossible to force himself to play naive.  His mouth had gone dry; thoughts raced in a blur as he wavered between what he should be saying and ... what he wanted to say?  Was that really the case?  Sasha glanced quickly over both shoulders - there didn't seem to be anyone in sight.  More telling, though, were the dogs - both of whom were standing on the walkway, watching the door expectantly.  If there was anyone out and about, Baldur, at least, would be watching them not the door. What little of the window Sasha could see from the archway of the doorstep still seemed as vacant as it was a few moments before. 

This was one of those things that, the more Sasha thought about it, the more the confusion would foster doubt.  "I know," he said, taking a deep breath.  A last quick glance at the dogs to verify their solitude and Sasha leaned forward and pressed his lips against Fergie's.

“Don’t worry,” Akiva reassured Fauna with the most comforting smile she could manage, touching the younger girl on the shoulder in the way a sister or aunt might have in a moment of uncertainty, “Just have fun and don’t worry so much.”  That was easy for one to say, of course, but Akiva was trying to keep as positive as posible about everything.  Hearing about taking Sasha in had been something of a shock to her, but she had to remind herself daily that she couldn’t worry about it – she just had to do it, she was responsible, in part, for him now, and it wasn’t a matter of not being able to or nerves about it, she just… had to. 

She thought she had risen to the challenge as best as one could be expected when an orphaned 15 year old showed up on one’s doorstep, and she was still learning about him, but he did not seem to be completely miserable all of the time and his appetite had picked up, he was spending a bit more time downstairs than he had at the beginning of the week.  Things seemed to be going up, in Akiva’s mind, and she thought she would not mind having him around so much. 

Fauna’s worry over being there unsettled her though, considering she could not imagine anyone disliking Fauna, nor could she imagine her and Sasha having such a conflict.  But, she supposed it was apt to happen at this young age, but things would work themselves out, they usually did.  For better or worse, there would be a resolution.  She just hoped if it was going to be in her kitchen, it ended up being for better. 

Standing next to Fauna at the sink, Akiva pumped a bit of soap onto her hands and started to scrub as well.  “I haven’t gotten any of the bowls or cookie sheets out yet, so I suppose we could do that,” she smiled at the young woman who reminded her so much of herself in some ways.  She didn’t want to talk about her own problems when she thought others had it worse, but sometimes, even if it seems small in comparrison, in one’s life, it was still a big deal, and if she was anything like Akiva, she had a way of understating some of her issues. 

She would not press at present though and as she wiped her hands on the spare towel next to the sink, Akiva glanced at the clock above the stove.  Sasha and Fergie would, undoubtedly, come in at any moment and everything would start going into full gear.  Each would need their own bowl – as they were going to make their own batches, and there would need to be a considerable amount of cookie sheets to go around. 

“They’re right up here,” Akiva said as she moved over to a cabinet, tugging the door open – it had a tendency to get stuck sometimes, and handed along items as she found them, the slight racket causing her to cringe as she tugged out a baking sheet and Gordon dashed from his food dish to the living room, probably under the couch – his usual hiding space.  “Sorry,” she looked back with a sheepish grin, “still organizing things, really…” 

“Are you ready to go back to school?” she figured the small-talk could happen while they were just doing busy work, getting ready for the boys to come in and things, Akiva would probably have to re-ask that question to stimulate any sort of conversation amongst the group.  This was probably, now that she thought about it, going to be quite the awkward day.