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Post by Jamie Ferrera on Jul 22, 2009 19:03:02 GMT -5
Jamie was leaning against the bar, cradling a firewhiskey in his hands. He had invited his two older brothers to meet him at the Leaky Cauldron to catch up. Jamie felt as if he had missed a lot as the little brother, being the quiet, reserved one. But after being with Scarlette for long enough, he had managed to be a little more loose around other people. He even managed to joke around slightly with Noah, instead of being the responsible one of the group.
Ultimately, Jamie was going to try and get Cyrus's story about how he dealt with Mara and Lina so close after school. He needed some guidance, some form of help that might give him a foot up on what to do after school. He had already commited to being an auror, much like the rest of the Ferreras, but he needed more. Tips on their Mother and Father was what he felt like he needed the most.
Of course Jamie wanted Roland there, to try and talk to. Jamie was done being angry at him for making the whole family tear apart for a while. It was for the good of everyone, and Jamie needed to see everyone's side on this. Cara and Mathieu were living together again, and it was good that they had experienced the funeral. If something happened again, they would know how to handle it better. It was a leanring experience for everyone.
Jamie had arrived a half an hour early, deciding whether or not to tell his brothers. But even as his time was done, he hadn't chosen.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jul 22, 2009 21:15:32 GMT -5
It had been a few days since his "triumphant" return, and it was still taking Roland a little while to get back into the swing of things. He hadn't realized just how much time had passed, and he hadn't expected it would feel so odd to go back to places that had once been regular haunts of his. It wasn't as if he hadn't gone away before, but this time felt different. He felt different. He had changed.
It was a change for the better, to be sure. He felt happier, lighter. He was in love, after all. It was bound to change his outlook.
When he received the owl from Jamie, he was quick to respond. Jamie had seemed kind of angry with him upon his return, and he felt like their relationship was tenuous, to say the least. Maybe it always had been.
Regretfully, he tore himself away from Riley and went to the Leaky Cauldron to meet Jamie. As much as he wanted to spend time with his brother, sometimes it really was difficult to leave Riley. He missed her terribly when they were apart.
But she would have felt out of place with just just brothers, so Roland went alone. As he stepped into the Leaky Cauldron, he was greeted by a couple of regulars, who were happy to see him again. One of the barmaids smiled flirtaciously at him, but he didn't even notice. He just went straight to the bar, where Jamie was standing.
"You drink firewhiskey now, do you?" he said, raising an eyebrow. Technically, of course, he was old enough. He was of age. But Cyrus couldn't handle firewhiskey, so it was a bit of a surprise to Roland to see his youngest brother drinking it. Maybe they were even more alike than he'd realized.
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Post by Jamie Ferrera on Jul 22, 2009 22:30:47 GMT -5
Jamie looked up at the eldest of his brothers and smiled. "It's certainly different than butter beer."
Truthfully, Jamie was still getting used to the taste of firewhiskey and the sensation of his burning throat. It wasn't pleasant, but not at all bad. Firewhiskey made him feel older, more mature. And anything that could help Jamie with some sort of confidence was an ally of his right now.
"Would you like a glass?" he gestured to the bar. "I'll buy you one." One or two fire whiskeys weren't going to hurt the savings he was attempting to build up. He was looking at a few apartments in London after their excursion. He didn't think he'd want to live anywhere too far away from their family and friends, especially in dangerous times. London or Hogsmeade seemed apprpriate. Each had good shops and places Scarlette and Jamie could go out to dinner if they so chose.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jul 22, 2009 23:37:44 GMT -5
Roland's lips quirked up in the corner as he eyed his brother. "Don't drink too many of those until you get used to them. It only took two and a half glasses to knock Cyrus on his butt."
Of course, Roland could nearly polish off a bottle on his own, if he tried. But he had already decided not to make a habit of that anymore. "I'll have a glass, but just one. Riley doesn't like it when I drink." His eyebrows went up at that, almost as if he was daring Jamie to say something about it.
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Post by Jamie Ferrera on Jul 23, 2009 0:27:01 GMT -5
Jamie smiled graciously, haven't have thought about the possiblity of getting snookered. He breathed out, glad he oreder himself another glass, as he would of done if Roland hadn't showed within the next few minutes. "I'm glad I only finished the first. I don't want to get caught at school." He didn't mention he had snuck out of Charms to have this meeting.
Jamie laughed lightheartedly, glad Roland had found someone to make him happy. He took a sip and smiled through the burning, "Riley, huh? How is she?" He didn't want to make a comment, seeing as he was in the same situation as his brother.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jul 24, 2009 0:40:05 GMT -5
"I'm not even going to ask you if you're supposed to be in class now," Roland said, raising an eyebrow at him. "I don't want to tell you how many times I cut class to go to Hogsmeade. When it comes to following the rules, I'm a terrible role model for you."
He settled down at the bar and leaned his arm against the counter as he studied his youngest brother. Something was going on with Jamie, he could sense it almost intuitively. There had to be a reason why Jamie had called this little meeting. But he would wait until Cyrus got there to start asking questions.
"Riley's great. I've never been happier." He could go on and on about her, really, but he was quite sure Jamie would become nauseous if he did.
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Post by Cyrus Ferrera on Jul 24, 2009 6:59:36 GMT -5
Cyrus had pretty much gone back to his old self again once it sank in that his family was intact again with the addition of two people. He tore himself away from Lina and Mara to go meet with his brothers.
Curiosity had struck him as he wondered why Jamie called this meeting. It was a school day and it was before dinner so he knew that classes were going on. Cyrus apparated quickly to the Leaky Cauldron.
Entering he saw Roland and Jamie standing at the counter. Cyrus walked over so he was standing between them. He stretched out both of his arms and patted them on the back. "Hello boys."
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Post by Jamie Ferrera on Jul 27, 2009 1:22:29 GMT -5
"It's nothing too important," Jamie grinned. He wouldn't have expected that Roland had skipped classes to go to Hogsmeade, and certainly he didn't expect that it had occured mulitple times. "I'm sure that it won't make too much of a difference in auror training."
"That's good news," Jamie said slowly. "I'll have to get to know her better." Of course, Jamie had known exactly what Roland was talking about. But he really did feel like he should get to know Riley better. She would be part of the family soon, if she wasn't considered it now.
Cyrus had finally arrived, and Jamie felt as if there were three different knots in his stomach. These were his brothers, he tried to reassure himself. They would help him, they wouldn't tell Cara...
"Hey Cyrus, how's Lina and Mara?" Jamie stalled, trying to figure a way to try and word what he wanted to say.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jul 28, 2009 11:45:54 GMT -5
Roland pulled his mind from thoughts of Riley when Cyrus walked in. Smiling at his brother, he leaned against the bar and took a sip from the glass of firewhiskey that the bartender had placed in front of him. At the bartender's questioning gaze, Roland shook his head. "Better make it a butterbeer for him," he said, remembering the last time Cyrus had tried firewhiskey.
"Yeah, Cy, how are Lina and Mara doing? Riley and I really intend to take you guys up on your offer of dinner soon."
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Post by Cyrus Ferrera on Jul 28, 2009 12:00:08 GMT -5
"Funny," Cyrus said looking to Roland. Of course, he remembered last time he actually had firewhiskey. He remembered sitting at the table with it in hand, although he wasn't sure how much he drank. The next thing he recalled was being on his couch waking up with a headache. After that, Cyrus told himself he wasn't going to drink, not if it gave him headaches like that.
He laughed and accepted the butterbeer from the bartender. "Lina and Mara are doing good. Mara is a lot happier than what she seemed to be before. I think she's going to start walking soon." While he was speaking of Mara, he couldn't help the light smile that was on his face. "As for dinner, Lina is going to be excited that you are coming over soon, Mara will be to."
Looking between his brothers, Cyrus was relieved that the three of them could actually go out again. Now that he and Roland weren't arguing over the fact that he should just ask Lina to marry him and forget about what their mother thought, things seemed a lot more pleasant. "How are Riley and Scarlette?"
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Aug 19, 2009 22:53:26 GMT -5
Roland's smile seemed permanently stuck to his face, and yet, any time Riley's name was mentioned, it got a little wider. "Riley's amazing," Roland said. "And she's reduced me to a gooey, sappy, lovesick fool... and strangely enough, I don't even mind it. But I don't want to bore you guys by going on and on about her. Besides, this little get-together was Jamie's idea."
He turned to look at his youngest brother, raising an eyebrow at him. "So, out with it, Jamie. What's going on? I get the feeling that this is more than just an excuse to skip class."
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Post by Jamie Ferrera on Aug 27, 2009 23:07:29 GMT -5
Cyrus had taken his betterbeer, which was just like Roland had hinted. Jamie picked up his own glass, swirling it around, every so often, taking sips from it. Mara had been his favorite relative, she was incredibley intelligent and inquisitive. He could just tell that she'd grow up and his brother would have to be beating boys off with a bat.
Jamie chuckled into his glass as Roland talked about Riley. They were a great example of how strange love could be, and he hadn't gotten to the point of his eldest brother, which sounded a lot messier than he wanted to be. Of course Jamie was in love with Scarlette, and he would have rather been spending time with her, but he wasn't as compassionate as Roland to begin with.
"Scarlette is fantastic. She hasn't been feeling well, but that's-" Jamie hesitated. That was jumping into the subject a little lightly. He took a deep breathe and managed to keep his eyes on his brothers, switching every second. "I know I'm not the best little brother around, I'm not really entertaining like you, Cyrus, or compassionate like Roland. I'm fine to just be by myself, but I think I really think I need help now."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Aug 27, 2009 23:34:30 GMT -5
It was one of the longest speeches Roland had ever heard from his youngest brother, whose reputation as "the quiet one" was rivaled only by Liam. He listened carefully, his worry increasing with each word. If Jamie was in trouble, of course he would be there for him. The most important thing was that he was asking for help.
Roland exchanged a quick glance with Cyrus, then turned back to Jamie. "You know we're here for you, Jamie. Whatever it is, you can tell us."
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Post by Jamie Ferrera on Aug 27, 2009 23:55:16 GMT -5
Jamie sat, sighing nervously. For once in his life, it wasn't due to feeling left out or unlike part of his own family. It was nervousness at his own future, which he hadn't felt before the news from Scarlette. Brothers were supposed to be there for each other, and instead of being a good family member, Jamie just pushed everyone away, saying as little as possible. He was selfish for wanting help now, after he had made a mistake. All Jamie could feel was guilt and as if he was asking too much when he hadn't done anything for them. He shivered slightly.
"I can't go to Cara or Matheiu," Jamie said, not even feeling the attatchment to call them his mother or father at the moment. He didn't feel like a Ferrera at all, and all the negativity that he had held in his mind about the baby now seemed to clamp around his lungs. "They can't know."
Jamie had stopped looking at his two brothers. It was too much for him, and the rim of his glass held all his attention. Anger at himself for putting Scarlette in this position, anger for not speaking to her, sad for letting Amandine fend for herself, scared for what would happen if he failed, scared that he might not be able to count on anyone but himself and Scarlette. What if he couldn't give them a good life? He shouldn't ask his brothers for anything.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled. "This was a bad idea."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Aug 28, 2009 0:29:37 GMT -5
Roland had always assumed that the problem in his relationship with Jamie had been on his end; that he somehow had held himself above Jamie in his attempts to protect him. He genuinely believed that he was different now; he was more open and easier to reach. So why was there still this wall between him and Jamie?
But watching Jamie now, he realized with a shock that it wasn't him at all. The same wall was between Jamie and Cyrus. Maybe it was just the way Jamie was. But whatever the reason, it was now preventing Jamie from being able to ask for help when he so obviously needed it.
Well, Roland was just going to have to crash through that wall.
"Jamie," he said, reaching out and putting a hand on his youngest brother's shoulder. "We promise we won't say a word. If you need help, we're here for you. No matter what."
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Post by Jamie Ferrera on Aug 30, 2009 22:40:45 GMT -5
Jamie jumped when the hand was placed on his shoulder. He looked up and gave Roland a grim smile, before thinking it over again. Maybe he could change the quiet tendencies he had when anyone but Scarlette was around. He could be more like his family, well- known and outgoing and commendeering, rather than just himself.
"I don't regret it," Jamie began, mumbling.
Of course he didn't regret it, Jamie was more excited than anything to have a miniature of himself or Scarlette in his life. But the things that he could do to mess up the kid's life seemed countless in his mind. Images of a starving baby, homeless without anything to keep it warm were starting to play on repeat in his mind. That motivated Jamie to do better in class, pay attention and learn faster to become an auror, but as soon as anything mentioned that reminded him of the subject, he was forced to endure another picture of the poor baby.
"Scarlette's doing fine, from what she told me," Jamie delayed saying the statement once again. He wanted all the facts out before he said it. "And all I need is to have a good paying job right out of school. If I could, I'd have one now, but-" he bit his lip, still staring at his glass. "I don't even want to mention it to the school."
"Look, Scarlette is pregnant, and I'm not going to leave her or my kid." Jamie closed his eyes, and waited for his brother's reactions.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Aug 31, 2009 0:52:36 GMT -5
Roland listened to Jamie talk, exchanging worried glances with Cyrus. He was becoming increasingly alarmed by the way Jamie was talking, and when he finally admitted that Scarlette was pregnant, Roland let out a breath and hit his forehead with the heel of his hand. "Merlin... Jamie, not you, too...."
He sighed and looked accusingly at Cyrus, as if it were all his fault somehow. "Well, obviously, neither of us can exactly yell at you for it, seeing as we've both done the same thing. What is wrong with us, anyway? First Cyrus, then me, now you..."
Of course, there was still that little part of Roland that couldn't help but think that his situation was different. He was 22; he was already out on his own. Jamie was still in school, for Salazar's sake. But he said he wouldn't judge, and he meant it. Even though it had been just a few months ago when he and Jamie had talked about this very subject, and Jamie swore to be careful... It didn't matter now. Jamie needed help, and Roland intended to give it to him.
"OK," he said at last. "How can we help?"
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Post by Cyrus Ferrera on Aug 31, 2009 11:45:01 GMT -5
While Jamie was prolonging the reason he wanted to meet up with them, Cyrus couldn't help but exchange worried glances with Roland. It never occurred to him what the real reason was. He was completely clueless.
Although, when Jamie finally mentioned Scarlette was pregnant, Cyrus' eyes widened. He couldn't believe what was coming out of his brother's mouth. If he had had butterbeer in his mouth, he would have spat out.
"You too..." came Cyrus' response at first. In a way, it wasn't really a surprise but then again he wasn't expecting it already. He caught Roland's glance and gave him a 'don't-look-at-me-like-that' look.
Yes, Cyrus had gotten Lina pregnant while they were young. They were able to handle it, even though it got a little rocky, they were able to make it through. Jamie was a Ferrera, and he could do the same.
Once he gave a glance in Roland's direction after he spoke, Cyrus looked in Jamie's direction.
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Post by Jamie Ferrera on Sept 8, 2009 21:47:39 GMT -5
Jamie managed to give his glass a sarcastic smile. "Yeah, me too, if you care to think about it that way."
Jamie didn't mind that he had followed in his brother's footsteps, and in general, yes, he too got his girlfriend pregnant. He kept the details in mind, and he could see it being fairly different. Despite this, Jamie was fairly happy that they hadn't given him any indication of a lecture yet. Jamie didn't want to be told what he did wrong and why it was so, he already knew it. But he didn't mind the wrong as much as he accepted what had happened, and felt strange about the future.
Jamie managed to look up to see the looks exchanged, and he managed to give another small smile. Roland attempted to make it better by poking a tad bit of fun at it, and in a tiny way, he was glad that his brothers were being understanding about it.
"Well, I definately need a job as soon as possible, and an apartment," Jamie was still a little cautious about coming to his brother for help, and tried to keep it as concise as possible. "Scarlette needs as much help as possible." The last statement was one that the youngest Ferrera felt he needed to say the most. Scarlette had all his focus.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Sept 8, 2009 22:08:45 GMT -5
Roland frowned. It was so much harder for Jamie than it had even been for Cyrus. At least he'd already had a job and an apartment when Lina became pregnant. Jamie was still in school, and he was pretty much going to have to start from scratch. Roland didn't envy him.
"OK... look. My old apartment is still technically mine. Well... Dad's, actually, but he gave it back to me. I was going to move my things into Riley's apartment gradually... I'm already living with her. You can have it. We can transfer it over to your name. I'll just move out a little faster, that's all. It's not like I have a lot of things to begin with. That way, you'll be right next to me and Riley if you need anything at all."
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