Now don't you understand, I'm never changing who I am

She was eighteen years old and she should have had her whole life ahead of her. Because, really, eighteen years old was still childhood, legality or not. She should have been travelling the countryside in a car packed full of friends, hair blowing in the wind, loud music devastating young eardrums that would lose their power later in life. Her biggest worries should have been what her NEWT scores turned out to be. Things should have been full of promise as she looked forward into the horizon with high hopes.

But Jack Dyllan had never been a normal teenager. She had only spoken at graduation because her professors liked her, not because she was well-liked. She had lost all of her friends in one night, and she had not seen Vito since she had discovered she had created him. It was a bit unfair, seeing as she had sacrificed everyone else for him, and now she was left out to dry. Her new job at the Ministry came with a sizable start up bonus so she had secured herself a place. At eighteen, she had none of the perks of youth and all of the expectations of an adult.

She had grown up quickly.

So why was she acting so strangely.

Jack knew what she was doing. She had been following two of Vito's guys, hoping that they could lead her straight to the monster in question. Knowing she had been guilty by association had given her the extra-curricular task of eradicating evil from the world. It seemed easy enough, from her perspective, but it had meant more than a few sleepless nights and a pretty alcohol-drenched bloodstream. It also meant that, sometimes, she looked like she was suffering some sort of strange stroke in the middle of Diagon Alley.

But she knew what she was doing. This was a stroke of genius.

Jack finished unrolling tripwire across the street. One end was tied to a bench and the line stretched across the dusty street, slack in the dust. Jack glanced about, blowing her hair out of her face as she surveyed the scene - it just needed another hand. Her hands on her hips, muggle t-shirt making her stick out like a sore thumb. And that's when she spotted someone long associated with the worst thing that had ever happened to her as a student.

Keiran Hayes.

She had not forgotten that stupid, fcking Quidditch match, but she supposed she could not be picky now. Taylors and Edwards would be approaching any moment now, and she had to be ready for them. So, without much of a warning, she turned and hurried towards him.

"Keiran Hayes. Long time, no see. Jack Dyllan. Let's not talk about The Game, okay? Look, I need a favor. Real quick, no pressure. Can you help?"

Keiran hated summer. He really did. Not because he minded freedom, but because he became so thoroughly bored that he didn't know what to do with himself. Frankly, he should have been excited for his time off, because he was finally done with university. But after that bizarre graduation night and trying to figure out how to talk to Avery again - normally, anyway - he was ready for the fall to arrive. Being a substitute wasn't all Keiran had ever dreamed of, obviously, but it was a first step on the way to his eventual slot as Headmaster of Hogwarts. Right?

He wasn't entirely sure.

It had taken longer than he had expected to get through his degree, but Keiran figured it was his own fault, considering he had added the teaching bit after an insanely interesting class the fall term of his third year. So he couldn't exactly complain. It just meant that he graduated with Avery and Gavin, who, in all honesty, Keiran couldn't say he hated anymore. He blamed Avery for that bit, though. And the library, for being so dull.

So, at twenty-three, he was finally getting started. His career was ahead of him, and he was going to a Quidditch match the next weekend with promise of an after party, and the possibilities of who he might meet there were endless.

He almost didn't recognize the redhead when she turned up, except she looked slightly put off by him, and that struck his interest immediately. When she spoke, he understood. She had been -what? twelve, at the time? Would nobody ever forget that damned match? Keiran sure wanted to. First, he frowned. Then he realized that he was being asked to help her, and that struck a bit of a nerve in him, and he found himself reluctantly agreeing.

"Help with what, exactly?"

Jack glanced down the street, her short red hair tickling underneath her chin as she did some quick calculations. The girl had never really been much of an academic, but she had found her proficiency in most areas went up when there was practical use of an immediate need. It was why her OWL scores and her NEWT scores were so different. The first told the tale of a lazy student lacking drive and focus. The second appeared to belong to one of the brightest witches her age.

The only thing that had changed was she now had something to fight for. And fight against.

She held up a finger, eyes closing. "Hang on." Had she more social experience, she might have known it was rude to put someone on hold that you had just called upon. But she had to run through her plan once again to ensure that it actually would work. It'd be ruder to involved him in a plan that would not only fail, but make him look foolish.

It would work. She knew it would. She opened her eyes and nodded, muttering to herself. "Yeah, yeah. Right. Brilliant. Okay," she glanced back to Keiran. "Right. Hello. All I need you to do is pull on a line when you see me. You'd really be doing me a favor."

Keiran frowned and drew back slightly when she told him to wait, crossing his arms over his chest and shifting from one foot to the other. Sure, he had obviously irritated this girl when they were in school together, but was that reason enough for her to prank him? He flashed an irritated glance to one side, wondering if anyone thought him mad for standing there while Jack did... whatever it was she was trying to do. He felt a bit mad, himself.

One eyebrow lifted as she greeted him again, unsure now if he actually wanted to get involved with this redhead and her problems. "Pull on a line," he repeated flatly. He studied her for a moment, feeling a little bit sorry for the anxiety she seemed to feel, and finally sighed, releasing the tension from his shoulders. "After you pass it, I assume? Or is there a signal I should look for?"

In truth, he didn't mean to sound sarcastic about it. It just seemed so very... Gryffindor somehow, and that irked him, even though it probably shouldn't have. Still, he had agreed and Keiran could only hope she would appreciate that fact rather than becoming more irritated with him.

He did not seem to be enthused, to say the least, but Jack did not particularly care for help from someone who was eager, she just needed the help. But he wasn't saying no, so she perked a bit and spun to face the street with him, pointing at the spot just beyond the line. "Sort of. I'll apparate, right there. When you see me, or hear the apparition noise, whatever works, you pull the line and hold hard 'till I say. Should just be a sec."

She glanced down at her watch. She had to go. They were coming. She hurried over to where the end of line lay slack and beckoned Keiran over. He was hidden by the side of a shop, and the line looked harmless in the dust. Firmly secured across the way, however, and the trip wire would be powerful. She could not let herself be seen to them until it was too late. They would run the other way if they saw her.

They were almost there though. Jack had to get a better vantage point. She turned to Keiran. "So, you'll help me out then? That'd be brill. I'll buy you a drink, owe you a favor."

She needed her answer quick.

Keiran couldn't decide if he thought Jack Dyllan was childish or brilliant. There was an obvious bout of deviousness within her that he could appreciate, so when he saw the end of the line, he almost laughed aloud. It actually sounded rather amusing, if he had to admit it. He often felt older than he was, now that he didn't have Avery or Gavin to remind him of how very ridiculous he could be when given the chance. After all, hadn't they just gone to that bar for New Year's? Now that had been a good night.

"Yeah," he assured her after a moment, "I'm on it. And I'll take you up on that drink, to be sure."

It wasn't until she took off that he realized he had no idea who she was trying to prank, or why she was upset with them. But that wasn't really his business anyway, he supposed. So he crouched behind the wall, his fingers curling loosely around the line. It couldn't have been more than a few minutes before he saw the shock of red hair, and he did as was required, yanking on the line and holding it taut. Just as he looked down to ensure that he had a good hold on it, the line pulled against him and there was a thud.

He had agreed, thank Merlin. A burst of a smile exploded across her face and she jerked her head into a curt nod. "Brilliant. Thanks! See you in a flash."

She ran across the street, glancing down. She couldn't see them yet, but that would change in just a moment. She had picked the place especially because of Wheezes, which she had full access to as a part-owner. She slipped into the crowd of the shop and hurried past her employees, waving them off as she hurried up the stairs to the flat that she rented out to Kirsty.

She reached the window and pushed the pane open, looking down the street. She couldn't quite see so with a grumble she apparated up to the roof, crawling towards the edge. Now she could see.

There they were. Storming down the street, running at top speed while Teddy from the office chased them down from a distance. The men were leading him into what they thought was a trap, but they had no idea that Jack could trap a trap.

Closing in now. 3... 2... 1...

CRACK.

She appeared in front of the line. The two men screamed and attempted to back pedal, but the line went taut and they tripped over the line, flying into the dirt.

The smiling, light-hearted Jack was gone. Anger and duty settled into the the lines of her face, suddenly transforming her into something very different from who she was. She looked ferocious as she turned around, pulling out two pairs of handcuffs. She stepped over to the first man and kicked him over, wrenching his arms behind his back and cuffing him. She pushed him into the dirt and moved over to the other man. "F*ck you, Dyllan."

"These cuffs are from a friend. You don't want to mess with them. Trust me."

Oh, right. Keiran. She should probably check in. She turned and looked at him, waving, the smile back. "Thanks!"