2 pm Meeting

Ana returned from her late lunch break with a rather less annoyed demeanor. The first meetings had been interesting, to say the least. Ana wasn't quite sure how the next one would go, but she could only hope the students knew each other or got on well enough to just accept it. Maybe she would get lucky and they would already like each other. For some reason, she didn't think luck was going to be on her side. It hadn't been during the other matches. 

The most calm one she had attended had been that of the Transfiguration Professor and the young Gryffindor. All things considered, that meeting and match seemed to be one that would go well. If everyone just trusted the Ministry's laws and ways, Ana was sure things would be far less complicated than they liked to make it out to be. She was biased, though, admittedly.

Settling into the chair behind the desk she had been given in the newly-deemed Guidance Office, Ana pulled out the files of the two students she should be expecting. All she could say was that the meeting would surely be interesting. By now she had been involved with students of all houses, and momentarily found herself wishing she had attended Hogwarts so that she would understand their mentalities more fully. Sighing heavily, she lifted her wand, unlocked the door, and set it back on the desk.

The students were expected momentarily, so she clasped her hands on the desk, making herself out to be the authority figure they should assume she was. Faintly, she found herself wishing Gideon or Elijah had come with her. At least they didn't have second thoughts like she had experienced during the meeting between Kaiden and Charlotte.

Vivianna Varnes was glaring at an inanimate object. More specifically, a door. The girl had considered not going to the meeting, a mild act of protest, but had ultimately decided against it. It would accomplish nothing. The Slytherin had never liked the Ministry, she was a Rebel for a reason. She thought that the whole system was corrupt, and looked down upon the fact that they didn't even try to hide it. The Ministry never tackled the important topics and issues, instead busying themselves with trivial matters. Then, the first time they got around to doing something about a serious problem, they went about handling it the completely wrong way; with the Marriage Law.  

Vivianna was about to have a meeting with a Ministry employee and her future husband. There weren't words to properly express how much she loathed the situation. Reaching into her pocket, she wrapped her fingers around a small vial. Pulling out the headache draught, the Slytherin downed it in one practiced gulp. She'd need that; there was no way she'd be able to handle this meeting otherwise.

Taking a deep breath, the redhead cleared her face of all emotion. She wouldn't let them see how much this was affecting her. Sure, she'd certainly make sure the Ministry was aware she wasn't pleased, but she wouldn't give them the pleasure of seeing her pain. Opening the door and stepping into the room, Vivianna pushed the door shut lightly behind her.

Her match wasn't there yet, but the Ministry bint was. Neutral expression transforming into a cold glare within the blink of an eye, the redhead pinned the woman under her gaze. "I'm Vivianna Varnes, but I'm sure you already knew that," the Slytherin said sweetly, too sweetly.

Walking over to the furthest desk from the witch in the chair, Vivianna pulled herself up onto the desktop. She had a tendency to sit on top of desks rather than at them, and saw no reason why she should change that simply because she was in the presence of some Ministry official. "I would say it's a pleasure, but I'm sure you'd rather I didn't lie during this meeting of ours," the pale female announced coldly. It hadn't been necessary to say that, but Vivianna figured that she might as well set the tone for the meeting. She was being nice, really, giving the Ministry witch an idea of what she'd be dealing with.

The moment when the owl had landed upon the breakfast table, holding out a leg imperiously, displaying a cream-coloured envelope with the official Ministry seal; was rather curious.

He knew what it was. People sitting in a ten-metre radius around him knew what it was. Hell, the whole f*cking Great Hall knew what it was.

He detached the envelope from the leg rather briskly, the owl swiveling around and winging through the air immediately. Opened the seal with an economic flick of the finger. Slid the parchment out of the envelope. Unfolded it. Scanned the contents.

Even without raising his eyes, he could literally feel the people sitting in the neighbourhood inch away gingerly, as if readying themselves for the incoming explosion. Reid had rather made a name for himself, in the past months. Not a good one, naturally. Then again, it was all a matter of perspective. When the mercurial grey eyes finally flitted above the surface of the parchment, the crowd drew in a collective inhale. Oh, how he abhorred being predictable.

Raised his hands above the table. The girl next to him twitched violently as a result, rather entertainingly. Picked up the envelope, folded the notice, slid in back inside. Placed it within his pocket. Pushed the bench back, rose on the balls of his feet and walked away, shoes clicking against the floor quietly.

Behind him, he thought the girl rather looked disappointed. If not the letter, at least he could have set something on fire.

He complied, rather unsually at that. Without even looking back, just snapped two fingers. The girl's shrieks, and the smell of burning hair; could be detected even three floors away.

~

The logic was rather simple, Reid didn't bother to comprehend why people were making such a fuss about it. This legislation would be repealed soon enough. Either that, or the country would crash. In absence of both, Reid would gather up his scarce belongings up in a rucksack and make out for some other part of the world. It wasn't like there was anything worthwhile to make him stay. Mere convenience, nothing else. The day the .....ah, Ministry, sought to take that away by imposing some sort of silly matrimonial law, Reid would flip them a finger and vanish. As simple as that.

So it made only sense to walk rather leisuredly to the Guidance Office, hands in his pockets, absolutely unconcerned. He wouldn't create too much a ruckus. Actually, it rather depended on the official who conducted the meeting. If he or she just babbled the requisite formalities and pointed at the places where signatures were required, well and good. If the official turned out all priggish and intent on flaunting authority over dismayed teenagers........well, they hadn't quite met this one yet.

But the second he turned the corner, and watched a rather familiar redhead pour something down her throat from a vial, he realised how little his reaction depended on the individual.......and how much on his prospective partner.

What were the chances. No, really. What were the chances in a million years that it would be Vivianna Varnes?

So he kept turning, and went off for a stroll in the corridor.

The only reason why he only kept them waiting for half an hour and not bunked the entire appointment (how fun it was to make authority wait), was the unease. The unease which was familiar by now, and had set in the moment he saw that pale throat work over swallowing the potion. Or more specifically, the will to ignore the bloody unease and prove how little it mattered to him.

The second between his rather hard three knocks, and the moment he threw the door open, was rather anticlimatic. The face of the official, still etched in professionalism and perhaps a little irate. Varnes' face. No words for the expression on that, really. And in that second, Reid knew what he had to do.

"Apologies for the delay, had work to attend to." Were the flippant, almost amiable words that hit the air of the office the moment he stepped into it. He turned round the desk, walking towards the chair just beside Varnes. Stopped himself for a second behind her chair, and bent: nose brushing through curls, registering a scent that clung to skin. When he spoke, his moving lips brushed the shell of her ear, whisper slithering inside her mind. "I told you I would know." Hidden from view, his hand slid into her robe pocket, gently prising out the now-empty vial.

Then he straightened, triumph flickering in his veins.

Took three steps and seated himself, without much pomp and fanfare. Fixed his hands on the Ministry official with a mocking attention, that couldn't really be called out on. "Shall we get on with it, then?"

The door opened and closed to reveal as redheaded girl who was acting far too calm to actually mean it. According to the file, she was a Slytherin, so Ana had decided she probably shouldn't trust the girl at her exterior. Ana didn't really trust anyone if she was being honest. “Yes, of course.” Ana replied cooly, watching the girl take her seat.

“Lying would be unadvisable, yes.”

At least the girl had a little sense in her. When a loud knock sounded at the door, Ana looked up and frowned. Honestly... There was no need for that. He approached the girl he was to be matched with and Ana found herself glancing down at her file again. The boy wasn't exactly from Hogwarts at all. Durmstrang? Ah. She might well know his type, then. Might being the key word there.

Strange, Ana thought, that he would be so comfortable with this. That neither had immediately gotten to fighting. Most of the others had. Perhaps these two were waiting for the time to strike and just have at it. Maybe they'd heard about their Headmaster who got so much because he argued for so long with Eli. Well, Ana wouldn't be giving in too very much. Azkaban could be as good of incentive as any.

“Yes, I daresay we should,” Ana replied lightly. Best to just have at it and hope it went a little more smoothly than the others. “Clearly, you two are here because the person next to you is meant to be the one the Ministry will see you marry. You'll have two weeks to get to know each other before you must set a date – two weeks after that – for your wedding.” Ana glanced between them, already a little tired of going over the speech again and again, changing it a bit each time so her mind didn't feel so numb. “At the two week mark, we can have a follow-up meeting if so desired to talk about options and the like. After your wedding you'll have required St. Mungo's checkups and a follow-up meeting or two. As for today, we need to just talk through all of that and I need to administer fertility tests.”

That part was always the clincher. Would they panic, or just decide they had no choice anyways so they might as well? Merlin help her, but she hoped these two were of the sensible variety.

((OOC: I went with a completely different angle this time. And sorry about the length.))

Vivianna sat in silence, refusing to talk to the Ministry witch even though it had almost been thirty minutes and the other student had yet to show up. The redhead didn't particularly mind, it gave her a little time to ensure she'd be cold and emotionless whenever her assigned male arrived. If he did arrive, and wasn't just intending upon skipping the meeting altogether. The witch smirked slightly to herself, at least she hadn't gotten herself landed with a Gryffindor. Thank Merlin for small favors.

But then Reid walked through the door, and Vivianna's usually impressive mind froze completely. Then Reid spoke, and his voice kick-started her brain again. The very first thought to cross her mind was; merlin yes! She'd been paired with Reid, Reid of all people! The teenager was well aware of her feelings for the transfer student, if she had to spend the rest of her life with someone? Reid would be it. Vivianna supposed that it did make sense, in the end. The Ministry had probably read both of their forms, and stuck them together so that no-one else would have to suffer from the biting words the two were sure to gift anyone they were assigned. It felt a little unreal, she was going to be marrying the wizard she loved.

The second thought hit just moments after the first one; wait, f*ck no! Because this was Reid, brilliant and perceptive Reid. She wouldn't be able to hide her feelings for long. Around anyone else it would be a piece of cake, but the other teen had always been an exception to so many rules. He'd figure it out, and then he'd know. Vivianna knew that she'd be dead if that happened. Not literally, but things between the two of them were rarely literal. Reid would figure it out, and then he'd smile, but she wouldn't know if it was real or an act. She'd fall deeper and deeper under his attentions and then Reid would snap the cord, leaving her to fall and fall before hitting the ground, mangled and broken. He had the ability to do that, and Vivianna had practically handed him the means on a silver platter. He had promised her that he'd get his revenge, after all.

Then Reid walked over to her and whispered in her ear, and the witch knew she was done for. The way his lips brushed her ear felt incredibly intimate, even as his words sent a chill of dread down her spine. The male had told her that he'd send evidence of her illegal brewing to the Law Enforcement if she ever drunk another vial of the potion she'd been addicted to.

Vivianna had been doing so well too, so very well. She hadn't slipped up once, before today. Underneath the glamours her face was slightly sunken and ghostly pale from what the withdrawal had done to her. She hadn't gotten a proper night's sleep since Reid had found out, either. She had been spending the nighttime hours laying in bed surround by a silencing charm, thrashing and screaming and waking from nightmares panting and craving and covered in perspiration. The bags under her eyes were worse than they'd ever been, and she was constantly disgusted by the way her limbs trembled, and occasionally gave out on her.

Everyone who knew her assumed that she was just upset about Bertie. The redhead was of course, horrifically upset, but that she would have been able to hide. She couldn't hide what a mess the withdrawal had made her, however. It was a new sensation for Vivianna, her very body betraying her. She loathed it.

The Slytherin had allowed herself a vial today, right before she'd walked into the meeting room. The girl had gotten less sleep the night before than any other night, and decided that it would be necessary if she wanted to keep it together during the meeting. If she'd known that her meeting would be with Reid, the witch wouldn't have bothered. Not even her potions were impressive enough to keep her together around the Dixon.

Vivianna didn't try to resist when Reid slipped a hand into her pocket and wrapped his fingers around the empty vial residing there. The Slytherin was screwed, and she knew it. She'd been so happy a couple months before. Things had been far from perfect, but she'd been happy. Now, she'd lost basically everything, had so very little left to loose.

The redhead had sat unmoving, only half-listening to the spiel the Ministry employee had probably rehearsed. As soon as she was done, however, Vivianna stood. Taking a few steps forwards, the girl casually leant against the desk Reid was seated at. "With exactly how much force does a male have to be hit in the balls to be left infertile?" the Slytherin asked the woman before her, tone completely innocent, but with eyes shining sadistically. As she'd spoken, the female had unnoticeably maneuvered herself into the perfect position, angle just right for what she was threatening to do. Her wand had been out and in her hand from the moment that she'd finished speaking, just in case Reid decided to try and strike preemptively.

Reid could have sworn there was a little flicker of pleasure there, a slight twitching of the lip, when Varnes first set eyes on him. Well well. He hadn't imagined her to recover so quickly as to already begin planning retribution for his behaviour that night. And what an opportunity this....ah, proposition for a marriage would be.

And if something whispered in his head that it didn't quite look like sadistic pleasure.....then Reid dismissed in within a second. The other half-conceived option was simply too ridiculous to be true.

First round, upon the tree. Second, in the Astronomy Tower. Third, now, on the precipice of marriage. This was going to be enjoyable.

He ignored her completely in the beginning, for obvious reasons, and nodded his head at the official's words with just that edge of ridicule. “Clearly, you two are here because the person next to you is meant to be the one the Ministry will see you marry." Oh, I would never have known. My everlasting gratitude for clearing that up. He was tempted. Almost tempted to hell with the act, and inform the official about her own....ah, 'options' if she wanted to leave the room with the topography of her face intact. Not that he doubted her proficiency if needs must, but adults, especially those in positions of power, had this downright delightful tendency of underestimating 'children'.

He snorted inwardly. He hadn't been a child for five years.

"Of course, perfectly understandable." He murmured, then glanced upwards at the woman, because regardless of his intentions, really, he wasn't that forgiving. "So a month of getting-to-know each other to give us an illusion of control over the situation, when we have none. And fertility tests on the first meeting itself." Very delicately put naturally, as if arrangements for a tea party were being discussed. "I must admit I'm surprised. The Ministry is being very open about treating us like their own personal breeding machines."

"But of course." The remorseless look again. "Perfectly understandable."

To be true to himself, he actually couldn't give less of a flying f*ck about the Marriage law, even from the morality perspective. Morality- now that was a sham of a word. One of the innumerable concepts which people liked dreaming up to make their life more....ah, meaningful. They wrote books and pearly quotes and discoursed at length upon it; only to give it up at a second's notice if the situation demanded it. Fickle, fickle. Even when a mother and her child drowned: the mother initially gave it her all to push her child to safety. But when vision started blurring, when water burned down your lungs and made your chest swell and no matter how hard you gasp, there seems to be no air, when the civilized mind ceases to work.......the mother would forget, would gasp and pull at anything, would push down anything to propel herself above the water's surface, even her baby's head.

How would they justify this then, the great 'good' people of the world? This scientifically proven, observed fact? People revolted and brandished words against this matrimonial legislation because apparently, their freedom was being deprived from them. When one's concepts of things and emotions greater than them, obviously thought because such concepts themselves made the people feel greater than what they actually were, made people prisoner- such acts and laws didn't make a whit of a difference.

Meanwhile though, the girl sitting- no, correction- now standing next to him, was threatening the health of a rather vital part of him. His continued ignorance of her existence couldn't possibly be improving her mood any further. Surely, he could spare her a sentence. So he twisted half way in his seat to meet her gaze and intoned, eyes soft and unforgivable. "Is that any way to behave towards your future husband, Vivianna?"

His voice caught on her name, cold and caressing all at once. There was that East European tinge too, which he never had quite dropped since Durmstrang, an unconscious roll of the 'n's, a drawling stretch to the 'a'. It had never quite happened before, because he had never called her by her first name before; not even inside his head. So the word rested unfamiliarly against his tongue, and its taste- was quite, quite agreeable.

Ana eyed the two students warily. Something was definitely not quite right about them, though she couldn't be sure if the problem was personal or with each other. How close could the transfer student be with this girl? Or had they become particularly strict enemies with the refusal to talk under normal circumstances? These were hardly normal circumstances, to be sure. The girl was either flustered or angry, and the boy was clearly angry but trying to hide it under a layer of sarcasm that the Ministry employee knew well. She, too, has been around the Durmstrang students and thus understood how seriously cruel those students could turn out to be. Somehow, this boy didn't seem like some exception to the rule.

“You misunderstand, Mr. Dixon.” Ana frowned, narrowing her eyes at him. “You see, there are things that most of the country isn't aware of – information they're not privy to. While you, surely, will sneer at such comments I daresay the curiosity is there. Otherwise you wouldn't have shown up at all, would you? Unless you're actually afraid of Azkaban – which, frankly, you should be. I wouldn't send my least favorite cousin there – and he's particularly horrible.” What on earth was she on about? Ana wasn't even sure. All she knew was that if she wasn't entirely serious and downright harsh with these two, she wouldn't be getting out of the meeting with a job, nonetheless two people settling for their match. For their lot in life. “The point is, however, that this law is important. Future generations will look back and thank us. Whether or not you choose to believe it.”

Elbows propped on the table, she watched him with narrowed eyes until her attention was drawn by the Slytherin girl. Ana had to keep from smirking. She rather liked this girl, if she had to say so from a short amount of time in her presence. But if this girl could somehow manage to put up with Mr. Dixon, Ana would have to give her a medal.

She let the question pass without answering, instead choosing to return to her file for a moment. Her temper was flaring faster than it should have, and the thought alone was displeasing. She had another round of meetings the next day and she would be damned if they went as badly as this one was looking to end up.

“As I said, the law is beneficial. The reason for the fertility test is simple: should your results be... unfortunate, there is possibility that the Ministry will reconsider your part in the whole thing. The point is to have the next generation of students be more well-rounded and have a larger likelihood of proficiency in magic.”

Ana had to bite her tongue to keep from going on about her research. She hadn't had the chance, nor the reason, to bring it up before. But now it ached inside her, desperate to come to the surface and make a point. This wasn't just some bollocks law that the Ministry had made up – She had crafted the research, made the points, and was immensely proud of it. Sure, a couple of those close to her (there were few she could name, anyway) would have to go through with the law. But the future of the Wizarding World would be better off for it. They might even thank her one day, when they realized what she had done.

“So,” She sat up straighter, peering down her nose at the boy and glancing in turn at the girl. “Unless there are any useful questions, I'd like to move on. Take the tests, discuss the next couple weeks, et cetera.”

Is that any way to behave towards your future husband, Vivianna?

Reid's words echoed in her head, even as the Ministry witch began to speak once more.

...your future husband, Vivianna?

She shouldn't have been surprised. The witch had never been able to escape Reid, not even inside her own head.

Vivianna...Vivianna...Vivianna

He'd never said her name before. He'd used her surname plenty of times, and called her some sort of insult or slur more times than she could count, but never before had he said her name. It was an almost funny thought; that she'd been in love with someone who had never even spoken her given name. Then again, Vivianna had always been a little messed up, hadn't she?

The redhead had to admit to herself, that her name had never been spoken quite like that before. Reid's accent, the way that her name had flowed almost caressingly off his tongue... The teenager refused to allow her mind to wander in the direction it wanted to. She was not going to think about Reid's tongue. She was furious with him right then, and besides, she'd need her wits about her if she wanted to survive this meeting.

Listening to the last few sentences of the woman's speech, Vivianna twisted her face into a blinding smile, even as her blood boiled inside her veins. "You're right of course," the Slytherin said with the self-reproaching yet amused smile of someone who had done something silly and only just realized their mistake. "If I was going to attack Reid, I'd hardly do it in your presence," the girl stated, tone still light and eyes gleaming like sunshine. "They'd throw me in jail for that, and if I ever end up in Azkaban it's hardly going to be for assault," Vivianna admitted, tone still far more happy than it should be, considering her words. It had been intended as blow at Reid for what he had threatened, but the bitter truth of her words lurked just beneath the surface of her delicate skin.

The redhead couldn't help but wonder how her life would be different if she'd never met Reid in the tree that day. There were hundreds of possibilities, but two in particular stuck with her. The first was a happier life. She'd been almost clean when they'd first met, but after her first conversation with Reid she'd down a vial without a thought. It had been a little too much for her fragile emotional state, meeting someone she couldn't beat. If it weren't for Reid she might be clean right now. Maybe Bertie wouldn't be dead. Maybe she'd be dating some Ravenclaw, and brewing in her spare time, and happy as the proverbial clam.

The other option was, the girl could admit to herself, far more likely. She would have failed to get over her addiction, just like she always had every time she’d tried before Reid. She would have been content enough, brewing and manipulating her way through life. She wouldn't have had someone to challenge her and stretch her limits the way that Reid did, but Vivianna hardly would have been able to miss someone that she'd never known. But then Bertie would have died, and it all would have gone to hell. She'd have ended up in St Mungo's, or fried her brain from overdose, or drunk enough potions that her system had no choice but to shut down entirely. So perhaps she owed Reid her life, or perhaps he owed her a life of blissful ignorance. Either way, speculation wasn't going to get her anywhere.

They said it all the time. The science teacher back at primary school, politicians on television and plastered across the Prophet, jobless do-gooders. Save the environment, destroy nuclear weapons, kill Dark wizards, the future generation will thank us...blah blah blah...

Reid failed to comprehend why the concept was so difficult for them to understand. The 'future generations' could all eradicate themselves, and he would remain unfazed. Ninety percent of the present world could eradicate themselves, and he would barely blink an eye. Raise a toast, maybe. To triumph over mass-spread idiocy.

The future generations could take their gratitude and f*ck themselves with it.

Reid raised his chin; his height, even when seated, was sufficient for cool grey eyes to look down the full length of his nose at the official. His smile had just the edge of pity to it. "Of course. Completely understood."

And meanwhile, Varnes was talking complete, undiluted trash. For someone whom he had deemed a moderately sensible girl quite some time ago, she did have the tendency of jumping to conclusions and resorting to daft behaviour very often. "You're right." He said, words escaping through pressed teeth. "The reason behind your hypothetical Azkaban sentence would definitely not be assault."

"But," And that consonant sound slid past lips, mere breath. Eyes had never issued a more direct challenge. "I would like it to be."

And if he were any more obvious, the Ministry official listening on to their every word might as well clap handcuffs on both their wrists and drag them away to aforementioned North Sea prison. For a Slytherin, and all the asinine stereotypes assigned to them, Varnes really was remarkably dense.

Maybe they'd share neighbouring cells.

"Cast away then." The words were all too clearly directed at the official, even though the gaze was still fixed on Varnes. "Let's see what kind of glorious progeny we might contribute to the Wizarding world."

Ana had a feeling that she could have been anyone in the world – the Minister even – and the two sitting before her wouldn’t have given a whit. There was clearly something between them, though Ana wouldn’t dare try and guess. At this point it was nothing she need be involved with, and she preferred it that way. Honestly, the less she knew about the people she was meeting with, the better.

Eyeing them both warily, Ana stood and made her way around the desk. Moving to stand in front of the redhead, the Ministry employee skipped over requesting that they stand. She doubted they were even listening with the way the boy was looking at her. There definitely had to be something there – she wasn’t entirely crazy and wasn’t really too bad at judging people. Or she preferred to think she wasn’t, anyway.

Slicing her wand through the air in front of Miss Varnes, Ana watched as the colors changed, half wondering if either of the students would dare to look. After a time the colors settled, and Ana nodded. “Not that either of you probably are excited by this, but it’s entirely possible for you to have children, Miss Varnes.”

A raised eyebrow in Reid’s direction preceded Ana’s stepping to the side in order to cast the spell once more and send the colors spinning before her. Once they appeared to have chosen their mark, she blinked in surprise before backing up to sit on the edge of the desk. “According to the spell, Mr. Dixon, you’re also fine for having kids. The two of you should expect a boy first, by the way,” she added as she returned to her seat, waiting for some sort of outburst to be sent her way.