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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 2, 2009 21:55:15 GMT -5
The day after she had talked with Henri, Aurelia was still feeling out of sorts. She honestly didn't know what she was supposed to feel. She wanted to be overjoyed, because not only was the man that she loved back in her life, but he also had not left her deliberately. But he didn't remember her. How was she supposed to take that? How could she look into the eyes of the man she had dreamed of reuniting with for 11 years, and accept the fact that he didn't remember the time they had spent together, or the feelings they had shared?
He wanted to start over again... and that was fine. But could they really fall in love all over again? What if it couldn't be repeated? What if too much time had passed, and they had changed too much?
All these thoughts weighed heavily on her mind as she went to Rita's house for a visit. She needed to talk to someone... maybe Rita could help her put this in perspective somehow.
So that was why she knocked on the door of Rita's house early the next morning, looking tired and lost.
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 2, 2009 23:26:47 GMT -5
When Rita left work the day before, Aurelia still hadn't come back. Naturally, she didn't know about any of the events that happened at the school. Usually, Dani's trouble making ways were resolved quickly. Rita was a little worried what may have happened to make this time different.
She opened the door wide, ushering Aurelia in. "I have water on the stove already... would you like a cup of tea?" she asked. When they were both safely inside, she sighed. "What did Danica do this time? She's all right, isn't she?"
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 2, 2009 23:40:22 GMT -5
Aurelia smiled gratefully. "Tea would be perfect, thank you," she said, following Rita into the house.
Rita's house seemed so empty now. Aurelia had known her long enough to remember when young Kieran still lived there, and Chelsea, and Rita's husband. The house had once been filled with people and life and love. Now only Rita and Kieran remained, and they lived separately. Whenever Aurelia thought about what Rita had lost, she felt a little selfish for being so concerned about her own problems.
"Dani is fine," she said, sitting down on the sofa. "It was just the usual... She got in trouble for fighting with her roommates, because they pushed her bed in front of the window. It's really outrageous that Dani was punished for it, and the girls who started it were not."
She hesitated for a minute, then added, "But something else happened. I don't even know how to begin..."
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 2, 2009 23:48:31 GMT -5
Rita listened while she went into the kitchen to pour another cup of tea. She was grateful that Aurelia stopped by, or she would have been worried all day.
"You know," she said, careful not to say anything that Aurelia might misconstrue as criticism on her parenting, because it really wasn't, "I think we should make it a summer project to get that girl at least a little more comfortable with her fear of heights. I feel so badly for her sometimes."
She came back into the living room, handing her friend the tea as she took a seat on the opposite end of the couch.
"Well... you have to start somewhere. Out with it."
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 3, 2009 0:00:03 GMT -5
Aurelia sighed softly. She hated that Danica had such a paralyzing fear of heights. It had started so suddenly, too... almost right after she and Dani had fled from Pavel. But Dani would never tell her why. "I know. I shouldn't let her stay so afraid of it... I tried to get her over it a couple of times, and I cried more than Dani did."
When Rita came back in with the tea, she accepted it with a grateful nod, then began to blow on the steam. It was a stalling technique, while she tried to pull her thoughts together.
"I told you about my husband and how we ran away from him... But there was a lot I didn't tell you. There was someone else... someone I loved a great deal. We were to run away together, but he disappeared. But now he's back--he met Dani at school. He's an auror. And he has no memory of our time together."
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 3, 2009 12:40:29 GMT -5
Rita agreed. It wasn't the first time Dani had gotten in trouble for fighting with other students, but it always turned out that she wasn't the one that started it. She was just a tough little girl- if you pushed her, she was going to push back. Rita liked that about her and desperately hoped the school didn't teach that out of her.
But Aurelia's words made her eyebrows go up and she laughed. "I'm sorry, you're going to have to slow down." Rita knew that there had been another man in Aurelia's life, but she didn't know much, if anything, beyond that, and the way Aurelia poured it all out sounded like a set up to a bad joke. Or the synopsis on the back of a romance novel. Besides, if it wasn't the back of a romance novel, what were the odds of something like that actually happening?
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 3, 2009 13:49:24 GMT -5
Aurelia sighed. "You're right... it's too much to take all at once. I'm supposed to meet Danica for lunch and she's going to ask me what happened, and I have no idea what I'm supposed to tell her."
She paused to take a sip from her tea, while she tried to make sense out of all of it. She failed.
"His name is Henri. I met him at Beauxbatons. We were so in love, and I thought he was going to save me from Pavel... I still don't know what happened. Now he is working as an auror and was assigned to patrol the school and keep the students safe. Dani met him purely by chance, and he was with her when I came to talk to the headmaster."
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 3, 2009 17:25:49 GMT -5
"Okay..."
It was still a lot to take in, and very blunt the way Aurelia was telling it. Of course, by the sound of things, Aurelia had a lot to think about right now, and was probably overwhelmed.
"Okay. Why aren't you thrilled to death right now? The man you love just happens to find you- which you know Dani would be overjoyed about- and you look like someone's died."
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 3, 2009 23:35:33 GMT -5
Aurelia managed a slight smile. "I am happy... of course I am. But it's so overwhelming. He doesn't remember... I thought maybe a memory charm.... Maybe Kieran could take a look? I don't know. He wants to start over, and that's good... but how do I start over when I remember everything? I just want everything to be just as it was, and it can't be."
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 3, 2009 23:45:24 GMT -5
Rita shook her head. "So what if he doesn't remember? You found each other not only once, but twice, and wanting to start over means he's at least attracted to you. You can't erase love with a memory charm. If I could have Daniel back, but he wouldn't remember anything- I'd take it in a heartbeat."
She didn't mean to pull her loss into this. It was just that Aurelia looked so forlorn, and Rita would, honestly, give anything to be in her place. Aurelia should have been happier.'
"I'm sure Kieran wouldn't mind taking a look at him. Can you lift memory charms? I don't even know."
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 3, 2009 23:59:17 GMT -5
Aurelia couldn't help but feel guilty when Rita mentioned her late husband. Rita was right; she had been given a wonderful gift, and she was not as happy as she should have been. But there was Danica to consider; the little girl would be devastated if something didn't work out.
"You're right, of course. I don't mean to be unhappy about it. I am thrilled to have him back. And if it takes a while to get restarted... then we'll take our time."
Aurelia had to admit; she really didn't know very much about memory charms. But Kieran would know if it could be lifted. She hoped it could... but would it really be that easy? "I don't know... I guess we'll have to find out. It would be wonderful if it could... but we'd still have to work at getting to know each other again. Not that that's a bad thing... It's actually sort of exciting, especially when I see him with Dani."
She reached out and took her friend's hand. "But enough about me. How are you doing? I'm afraid I've been very selfish."
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 4, 2009 0:05:18 GMT -5
"You haven't been selfish at all," Rita said. "This is big news, and more exciting that anything going on in my life. I can see where it would be overwhelming, but it's great, too, and I hope you really do see that."
She held her emotions in a lot of the time, but there were other times when the absence of Daniel and Chelsea, and even Kieran to some extent, would hit her like a tidal wave and she would struggle just to figure out how to stand up straight. She tried to reserve those moments for privacy.
"So, he's good with Danica? I suppose that's important... you haven't really dated or seen anyone in all the years I've known you. I wonder how she'll take to that."
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 4, 2009 0:21:12 GMT -5
In the years since Aurelia and Dani had run away from Pavel, Dani had never really talked about wanting a father. Aurelia knew that she would sometimes look at other families, such as Rita's, that had a mother and a father and more than one child with a note of longing, but she always seemed to understand why she didn't have a father. Whether or not Pavel was actually her father, he was still the only father she had known. So maybe she had avoided talking about the subject because she knew it was a sore one for Aurelia.
"I don't know. I think she suspects something... I had only told her that I had a friend named Henri, but I never told her the details. I have to figure out what I'm going to tell her today, because I'm not sure what to say. But if he didn't get along with Dani, it would be all over. She's my priority; she has to be."
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 4, 2009 0:26:56 GMT -5
"Good girl," Rita said softly. "There's no sacrifice a good mother wouldn't make for her children. I don't think you need to worry, though. Danica gets along with everyone. And if you loved this guy once, he must have been a really good guy. Dani will see that, too."
She set her tea on the coffee table, somewhat disinterested in it now.
"Tell me about him, Aurelia. How you planned to run away, how you fell in love, all of it. I need to hear a little happy romance. And maybe we can come up with something for you to tell that overly curious kid of yours."
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 4, 2009 17:00:10 GMT -5
Aurelia smiled softly. She was not unaware of the sadness in Rita’s tone. It was hard to ignore. Again she felt guilty about being happy, and having the good fortune to be reunited with the man she loved. She wished Rita could find some happiness, and Kieran, too, for that matter. They had both been through so much.
“When I started at Beauxbatons, I could only speak Czech. The teachers gave me a magical translating device, but they also thought I was behind, because I was a muggle. So they assigned me a tutor. It was Henri. I’ll never forget the first time I saw him… I was only Danica’s age, but I felt weak in the knees and I couldn’t stop smiling. We were friends first… he didn’t kiss me until I was 14.”
She went on to talk about some of the things they had been through together, and how they had tried to find ways to stop the marriage to Pavel. Finally she mentioned how they planned to run away together and how they had spent the night together the night before she was to marry Pavel.
“But the next day, I went to the church early, like we planned, and I was waiting for Henri to arrive, but he never showed. I ended up having to marry Pavel, and never knowing what happened to Henri. It’s haunted me all these years, the fear that maybe he decided I just wasn’t worth it.”
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 9, 2009 14:02:08 GMT -5
"Don't even think like that, Aurelia," Rita said, those last words really hitting her. "Pavel was a horrible man, and he thought you were worth it. Something obviously happened. Do you think Pavel could have had anything to do with it?"
It was a tragic story, and she ached for Aurelia, but she didn't really know what to do. Like Aurelia already mentioned, Kieran would know what to do.
"It must be so hard- having all that history and being the only one to know it. It will work out, okay? Everything works out in the end... or else, what are we doing here? Come here."
She pulled Aurelia into her arms and hugged the young woman. "You're going to have to keep me updated on everything. And I'll always watch Dani if you need some time with him while she's home."
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 10, 2009 15:52:43 GMT -5
"I thought about that," Aurelia said. "But Pavel is a muggle, and not a very smart one. He wouldn't have been able to come up with something like this, let alone perform the magic needed. But his father... there was always something about that man that frightened me. I always got the feeling that he knew more than he should. And he was absolutely adamant about me marrying Pavel. I never knew why, but it seemed more important to him than it was to Pavel."
She hugged her friend back tightly. "Thank you so much. I appreciate the offer, and I may take you up on it. But... there's one more thing I have to tell you. I can't even tell him yet... I'm afraid it will be too much for him..."
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 13, 2009 12:00:41 GMT -5
"Was his father a muggle, too?" Rita asked. It was possible the prat was an impotent squib. In fact, Rita rather hoped that was the case. If she ever met the guy, which she knew she never would, she would kill him just for what he'd put Aurelia through, even if he had nothing to do with her friend's school sweetheart.
As Aurelia continued, Rita quieted and nodded. "Well, tell me, at least. I can take it," she replied, taking another drink of tea.
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Post by Aurelia Krizova on Dec 13, 2009 12:40:55 GMT -5
"I thought he was," Aurelia said. "He couldn't do magic, I know that. But he always used to watch me carefully when I was younger. It was very... what's the word... creepy. He used to make the hair stand up on the back of my neck when he looked at me. And when he found out that I was a witch, he was even more insistent that I marry his son. I never understood why."
She shuddered at the memory of the man, with his dark, piercing eyes. Truthfully, she was more afraid of him than she had ever been of Pavel.
Aurelia hesitated for a moment, trying to figure out how best to tell Rita the secret she had kept inside for so long. The only person who had ever suspected it was Pavel, and that was probably the reason he had treated her so badly after they were married.
Finally, she just decided to say it as plainly as possible. "Henri... he might be Danica's father. I don't know for sure... but the timing was so close... I've always believed it was Henri, but I can't be sure."
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Post by Rita Dawn on Dec 13, 2009 12:51:53 GMT -5
Rita's brows creased. "That doesn't make any sense. He should have been less inclined to have you in the family as a witch." Many muggles were terrified of people who could do magic, and she knew of many marriages that had been canceled because one of them had been found out. So why would Pavel's father have been more interested? She didn't even have any ideas.
But those thoughts were quickly forgotten at the next bit of news, and she took a deep breath. "Oh, my." They had been very close, then. Rita knew without asking that Danica didn't know about this... though maybe she should. The little girl shouldn't have to think that Pavel was her father, but if Aurelia didn't know for sure...
"I hate to say it, but it's probably best if you wait to tell him. Are you going to tell Dani?"
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