Christmas Break ( Keela / Vincent )

[kyla]

Keela smiled, "I think you're exaggerating", she accused softly. Surely he had to be, right? There wasn't any possible way that his life could be more chaotic than hers. She grinned, fairly confident in her assessment. Still, it paid to be prepared, and if he was telling the truth, maybe she ought to talk to her mother about her nerves. She wondered how things had gone when her mum had met her grandmother. Well she expected, since the two women were good friends, but anything was possible she supposed. "Your mum can't possibly be anymore chaotic than Ashlynn can she?" Now that assumption she was fairly confident in. If his mum was more overwhelming than his sister, well, she might just have to find a corner and hide in it for the extent of her time on his family's island. Still, there were going to be enough people around that Keela was fairly comfortable with the whole idea. He wouldn't let anything happen to hurt her, shock her maybe, but not hurt her. The thought made her grin, maybe it would even be fun after all.

Keela laughed, "your little sister likes to embarrass you?" she resisted the urge to say something like 'imagine that'. "Makes sense", she offered instead. She gave him a teasing look, "someone has to keep you on your toes when I'm not around after all", she reminded him, "otherwise you'll get too comfortable." That explained why he didn't care much for the stairs, he wasn't used to climbing them at home. "It does", she agreed. "I just thought it might be nice to offer", she pointed out. Actually, having access to his room appealed to her on a number of levels. A person's space told a lot about them, more even than she might have learned in the time they'd known each other. The combination of his words and the hot breath on her ear made her shiver reflexively against him, and the tingling traveled the length of her body before settling comfortably, or uncomfortably as the case might have been. She turned her head, eyes having darkened a shade or two in the moments he spoke, and offered him a smirk. "If its a bed warmer you're after, I've got a spell for that", she grinned at him cheekily. Despite being noticeably affected by his words and the images they brought to mind, she had learned to give as good as she got in the passing weeks, and was proud of herself for keeping her head. She gave him a mischievous grin in response to his 'carpet' comment. "I don't know, I think warming the floor might be fun."

She listened as he described his own family situation, nodding as he spoke. "I have no idea what everyone's plans are. I know Cern will probably stay here with whoever he marries. I had originally planned to spend my life traveling around but..." she gave him a meaningful look. "Now I'm not sure what I'll do." She said a silent prayer to whomever might be listening as they left the platform to head downstairs. She knew her family was going to watch them more closely than she would have liked, at least until Cern and Lilli got back to divide their attention. Her mum and dad we're in the corner closest to the tree, probably because dad often passed out the presents. The looks on their faces, the way they were smiling, confirmed her suspicions about their time outside. They appeared lost in their own little world until she and Vin reached the bottom of the stairs. Her mum smiled. "Well, hello sleepy head, where have you been all morning?" Rosalie turned her attention to Vin. "Good morning Vincent, I trust you slept well? I hope the little ones didn't give you too much trouble at breakfast." She'd obviously been talking to Aunt Boann. "Has anyone seen Cern and Lilli? I think we're almost ready to get started."

[shava]

A puff of laughter with no explanation to her first statement, but then she asked about Ash and Lindsey and he had to chuckle. "Mova, Lindsey is Ash's hero, she tries to be like her when she was younger." A second's pause while that sunk in for a moment. "From what I've heard, having the curse, she acted out whenever she could to take the pressure off. Apparently she made quite an impression on everyone." She thought it was funny and Vin smiled, but didn't laugh quite the same. "Yes, she thinks showing off that she is developing physically is a fun way to tease her brother by making sure to tackle me in inappropriate ways and times."

He hadn't figured out what to do about Ash yet, but he wanted to find a guy he could deal with and push him into her bed in hopes she would be distracted. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen your room yet, Keela. Do I have to make a promise on best behavior to see your place?" She teased him back about bed warmers and he smiled, sliding his hands from her waist slightly upwards, teasingly. "If that is the only way you can think you can help with that love, then I accept whatever you are willing to give." Chuckling softly in her ears as he turned his hands to meet above her stomach together in a higher hug, just short of pushing it.

Her hesitation and look said volumes. Vincent felt his temperature climb and his heart increase a bit. They needed a talk without interruptions or time restrictions, a chance to help her think more seriously about them as together. Quite seriously he said "Do I get to give you my two knuts on that or is this a private decision?" Oh man did he want to talk more about this, but unfortunately it was time for them to get moving. Her parents seemed to be in a good mood which was a good thing. "No ma'am, my youngest sister is still not talking yet, I'm used to chatter, just not used to being part of a watch system," he joked as he sat down.

Seeing his present for her was under the tree he relaxed and waited as she sat with him, putting his arm around her shoulder on purpose instead of her waist as he would have preferred. As someone went to find stragglers he found the same boy who had been watching him that morning stepped over and put hands on his knees looking up at them both. "Are you guys getting married?" Rose's mother looked at Dian with a slight frown, but aunt Boann hid a smile and Vin was sure someone had put someone up to it. "Well," he leaned down and picked the boy up by his waist up on his lap which the boy accepted trustingly, "I'm going to be in school awhile still so I don't know that we have an answer for that yet, Dian. But I promise when we know I'll tell you. How's that?"

The boy nodded and turned around on the front of his lap as Vin held him, clearly used to little ones, and used his vantage point to give the presents an eye. Vin glanced at Keela with a grin and shook his head; her aunt was a pushy, but fun woman. He had to admit he liked her best so far.

[kyla]

Keela listened thoughtfully, her mum hadn't made the connection yet between Vin and the girl she'd gone to school with. Keela wondered how she would react when she did. Keela thought about what she'd seen of his younger sister, compared it to what she knew of herself and tried to put things into perspective. Though she knew it was possible she was way off, she couldn't resist point out: "Is it possible she's just looking for approval?" She paused a moment, organizing her thoughts before she continued. "Most girls her age are insecure about their bodies, its an awkward age.." Even for someone who could change their body she wagered... To Vin she added: "Maybe she's showing out that way because she wants attention. Its easy to feel lost sometimes in a big family." Keela didn't experience it as often, being the oldest, and she knew Cern had always had an innate feeling of importance since he was the heir and had to learn and be aware of everything that entailed. But, the younger ones, and even sometimes she and Cern had had thoughts and feelings of being lost in the crowd, it was a natural part of being a memeber of a family the size of theirs. "Maybe if you stopped reacting to it? Stopped giving her the satisfaction of getting under your skin?" She gave him a mischievous smile, trying to lighten the mood. "I love you, caro mio, but even I think its fun to get under your skin sometimes", she confessed.

She laughed lightly, "to my parents maybe", she agreed, "but not to me." She looked to be considering the idea for a few moments before she conceded: "I'll show you after we get finished downstairs. We should have a couple of hours before I need to go down and help get started on Christmas dinner." That was a responsibility she wouldn't be let out of, and she wouldn't have wanted to be. It was tradition that she, mum, and her aunts all piled into the kitchen at Christmas to make dinner. Even though it meant sticking Vin alone with her father and brother for several minutes, she hadn't even asked to be excluded. Some things just went without saying. She wondered if Lilli would be included, and even further she wondered how she felt about the idea. Her brother was obviously serious about the girl, and Keela liked her a lot. She might have been more impulsive than Keela was used to, but she seemed good for Cern, and that was ultimately what mattered. Giving herself a mental shake, she returned to the present. She made a face at him before she sighed, a smile on her lips. "You're no fun!" she'd been expecting a reaction, but he obviously had brothers and sisters and was used to teasing. His arms around her and the voice in her ear told her he was teasing her too, messing with her in the way he knew had the strongest impact, and boy was it having an impact. She turned her head to look at him with what she hoped was a stern expression. "If I have to go downstairs looking like I want to snog you senseless, you're sleeping in the barn tonight," she threatened.

She met his gaze, considering, then smiled. "You're welcome to give all the 'knuts' you'd like, love. You know that." She was honestly curious to his position on things. They'd talked through basics, she had a general idea of what his plans were and what he wanted, but with the end of the year approaching it was getting close to time for them to hash some things out. She squeezed his hand as she waited for him to gather his thoughts. Her mother was trying to get to know him, and Keela appreciated that. The Gryffindor in her had arched eyebrows at the news that Keela was dating a Slytherin. Dad had to remind her that she lived in a family full of Slytherins, and that not everything nor everyone was cut and dried. Rosalie laughed, and even her dad smiled. Her mum gave them a look that said quite plainly 'what can you do'? "It'll get better once they're used to you. Now as for how long that'll take I haven't the slightest idea." Keela searched her mother's eyes. It was the first time she had mentioned Vin as being more than just a short-term guest. Maybe she sensed something, or maybe she was growing more comfortable with the idea, Keela hoped it might be both.

Dian's question drew everyone's eyes to see Vin's response, and Keela briefly considered sinking into the floor. She was fairly certain there was a charm for that. She considered answering him, but decided to let Vin handle it, maybe he'd impress her family in the process. She grinned, such a diplomatic answer, so very Slytherin of him, but he had said 'when' and not 'if' and she doubted that fact was lost on her parents. She tweaked Dian's nose with the tip of her finger. "Silly one, I knew you'd be the one to ask a hard question", she told him softly, and he giggled, more at her tone than what she'd actually said. As was tradition, no one opened anything until everyone had presents, in a family this size it was easier to do everything at once, utter chaos, but easier. It was also to build suspsense she suspected. Keela was surprised when Vin was handed not just one, but two presents. She knew she'd gotten him one, but who else, her parents? Leaning over him, she studied the tag, and sure enough, her mum's elegant script stared back at her. She smiled to herself at their thoughtfulness, things were going better than she could have hoped.

While she had no idea what her parents had gotten, she did know what was in the other box, her gift to him. It had taken her forever to find. First, there was figuring out what 'steampunk' meant in the first place. She'd found it in a book on muggle history in the library one night. Then, she'd had to find what she was looking for, which was how she'd spent the first part of the break. The watch looked as though someone had taken the casing apart in places, but the whole thing opened to the actual watchface. She had also done something magical to the watch itself, but would wait to show him that until later. Her own gift from him sat in her lap, and it was killing her not to just tear into it. Finally her father's voice rose above the din. "All right everyone, have at it!"

[shava]

He thought about it, but personally he just thought she had inherited the family insanity that seemed to abound. Ash was one of those who just seemed more off then the rest, with the possible exception of Darius who only time would tell about. "Maybe. She's both in the middle of the family and the last. There are only three Silver-Moons and the rest are all Silvers, so she is the youngest and the middle child in a way." He tilted his head at her, wondering if that had been some of their issues in the last year. "Did you feel insecure love?" Her mention of getting under his skin he chuckled at and added "I like the way you do it, Mova, she's my sister. Having her trying to get me to physically be aroused is disturbing..."

Yeah, mental. He was going to lean more that way.

Hearing he would get to see her room was good enough for him; to understand Keela he wanted to see who she had been, not just the finished product. Her room would probably help him see some of that. Laughing at her threat about the barn he chuckled out "I'll behave, I promise! I bet the barn is damn cold..." And he did retreat a bit, just to be sure she knew he was trying. Then came the serious stuff and he was still softly playful, but his voice did become more serious. "I'm seventeen, you're about to become eighteen. You want to travel and so do I. I do need to have kids though for mom if nothing else, but nothing says I have to have them early. We could maybe get married next winter vacation if things go well and when I graduate spend a year or two traveling, seeing the world. If you have a great opportunity come up for work, I can play second fiddle on the sidelines and find some work to keep me out of trouble if you need time to get a career going."

Running his hand over her cheek he said very softly and with care "We're young, Keela, adaptable. We can go with the flow and see what works and doesn't. I don't need things set in stone if I know you are going to be there with me..." A soft kiss on the cheek like punctuation, to let her know he meant it. A little bit later downstairs he was glad he had spoken when he had as Dian brought it all up plainly and got a lot of adult attention. When presents were handed out Dian squirmed down excited and Vin found her father handing him two presents surprisingly! Recognizing Keela's writing on one he whispered holding the other "Parents?" He smiled, thinking this was going pretty well if they felt he was worth including such a way.

His package was handed to her as it was easy to spot from a distance, Aunt Aramid giving it an interested look as she handed it over. Noting others looking at it he spoke up "It crinkles like the old parchment too, I thought it was very cool..." The inside was going to be just as interesting! Opening his gift from her first, he looked at the watch made of gears with interest, a smile on his lips. "Say! Nice, where did you find that?" Then he noticed that it opened and smiled again broader at the watch inside. "Oh I like, maybe I can get a watch fob on my belt so I can hang it on my uniform too..." Opening her parent's second, he grinned at the Cloak Pin and said to her "Has someone been speaking about my Octo maybe...?"

[kyla]

Keela considered that. Spoiled like a youngest and with all the inherant issues of being in the middle, yeah, that explained a lot. She bit her lip. It wasn't that she didn't want to be honest with him, it was only that she wasn't sure how much to unburden. "In some ways", she finally admitted. "I had the benefit of being the oldest, and being first meant I got some time that was just me, mum, and dad." She paused, "but of course I felt insecure. I know guys have a lot going on, but being a girl is no picnic either." At his admission, she pulled a face. Grossed out beyond words, it took her a moment to respond. "Seriously?" She tried to think of her brother that way and paled. "That's..." Gross...disgusting...unspeakable... "odd." She swallowed bile, she loved her brother, and she knew girls fancied him, but beyond that she was clueless, he was her little brother, end of story. Not sure she wanted to know the answer, but no less curious, she finally came out with: "why would she do that?"

Keela grinned at his reaction, pleased with herself. "This time of year, yes, but in the spring and summer it isn't so bad." She was gratified by the slight change in him, knowing he was taking her seriously. A winter wedding, it suited Keela, and she wondered briefly if he was about to propose. Was she ready to say yes if he was? Her heartrate picked up just thinking about it. "Would you want to get married while you were still in school?" she asked, thinking of the distance and time apart. She thought about the picture he painted, surprised that he'd put so much thought into a timeline. "I thought maybe I could do a bit of freelance at first. Its a good way to get a lot of varied experience quickly, and that way we could take some time to do our own thing for a while." Once she had a resume and some experience built up, she'd have an easier time finding something permanent when they did decide to settle down. Still, to be married at eighteen, only a year after her mother, it wasn't something she'd ever thought about. Well, not until recently at least. With Vin, the idea didn't seem so intimidating, they'd travel around, build a life for themselves, and then build a family when the time was right. She could see it, could almost picture it in her mind, and she liked the image.

She agreed with what he was saying, and told him so. "Yes, we can. We'll make it work, see what happens", she shrugged as she slid off the window seat. Just before she turned the corner to the stair landing, she added in a soft voice. "But I wouldn't mind you know, having them set in stone." Downstairs, Keela grinned at his question and nodded. She hadn't expected her parents to get him anything, but was glad they'd made the effort. She wondered what they'd gotten Lilli, but couldn't see over the carnage of flying paper. She'd have to ask her later. The paper on his gift to her was different, and she was careful not to tear it. When she saw the gift itself, she stared at it in admiration for several seconds. A camera! She'd never had one of her own before. While she owned several, they'd all been hand me downs from Gran. This one though...it was hers, and it looked reminiscent of the same style from his other gifts. He'd added a touch of himself for her to think of every time she used it, clever of him. "Oh Vin its..." She held it up for Rosalie and Taranis to see. "Mum! Dad! Look!" Her face lost several years in her excitement, and Rose laughed warmly, giving Vin an approving look. "Uh oh love", she said lightly, speaking to her father, "I think he's found the way to her heart." Her father's face had softened as he glanced between the two. It looked as though he were seeing something that appeased him.

Keela blushed, but she was still grinning. "I went hunting for it at the beginning of break. It took forever to find one that was compatible with magic..." She broke off as though she'd said too much, a quick glance at her father confirmed he was amused. "I'll show you later on." He mentioned the Octo, and she grinned. "Maybe, I just told them how cool it was that you could do something like that, they did the rest themselves." She began tearing into the presents from everyone else, thanking them all enthusiastically. After the chaos had settled, the mess had been cleaned up, and hugs and kisses had been exchanged, Keela headed for the stairs. "I'm going to show Vin my room", she declared, asking permission with her eyes. Her parents shared a look before Rosalie nodded. "All right love, just be back down by three, we need to start on dinner around then." Keela nodded, grasped Vins' hand and took the stairs much more quickly than was strictly necessary, half afraid they'd change their minds.

She followed the hallway to the end and touched her wand to the door. "Basic ward, comes in handy with the little ones." She stepped into the room, and closed the door behind them. Taking up most of one wall was a gigantic collage of photos, both magical and muggle. A white baby grand piano was tucked into the oposite corner of the room. "Welcome to my world", she said by way of introduction. The sudden quiet felt strange after all the noise and chaos of the morning. "What do you think?"

[shava]

Vincent made a face, knowing it was bad and not liking having to admit it, but it was just like Ash to find making it hard to explain something and make him uncomfortable would be half the fun. "Oh she's not going to follow through, she just wants to make sure to get to me, make me uncomfortable. It's fun to her to make people squirm, even her relatives." He'd never contemplated sleeping in a barn so was a bit taken aback. "You make it sound like you've done that before. Why would you, just for the experience?" Actually, it had to be partly where the phrase 'roll in the hay' came from he knew, but it had just never contemplated doing it himself.

The fact she did not react larger or get all squirmy on him went a long way to pleasing him that she had already been thinking that way. "Might as well. Both our families would be easier to get together during that time and Keela, I already waited a year, I think a half a year with possible Hogsmeade visits in-between would tide me over. besides, I understand weddings normally take about a year to set up with all the stuff happening and this would be about a year away." There, that was a hint he was very close to asking her. And with her liking the idea he was even closer to bringing out the second ring then the first should things keep going this well. In fact the way she said we had a decidedly good sound to it! As they went around the corner she paused and told him she wouldn't mind it, and he chuckled as she led him on.

Things could be done both ways he was sure.

The look on her fact about the camera was one he wouldn't forget soon and the delight in her eyes told him he had made a good choice. "I saw it and thought it was a nice unique one and small enough to go in a bag easy. You could be the envy of your peers on your internship that way..." The look he saw on her parent's faces told him he had just scored very highly as well! Feeling good about that, he was fairly sure if she dealt with his family all right the question she wanted in stone was going to be asked. "Later huh?" he ran a finger over the face of it again wondering what she had been up to, but the cloak pin was perfect for a second distraction!

Vincent was glad he had given her parents their hostess gift when he first got here otherwise in all the madness it would have gotten lost! Besides, every house needed a mantel clock with nice deep tones, the kind that made you love acoustics.

She practically pulled him upstairs which made him laugh, seeing as she didn't want to waste any time. Her room fit the rest of the house, he noticed, with the light colored theme. He was a bit surprised by the piano, but what really caught his eyes were all the photos. "Wow, you play often enough you have your own huh? Not bad, Keela," he said as he glanced around and then stepped closer to look over all the pictures, moving and not. "It's nice and airy, yet feels private. I bet the sound is good in here too. I think it fits you very well, Keela," pulling the edge of one photo down to peer at it. Stopping to let the cat sniff his finger again and remember him, he turned to her with a nod of appreciation. "I notice a lot of llamas in those pictures, do you name all of them too?"

Oh yeah, he would be trying to remember all he could about this room.

[kyla]

His continued explanation made her slightly less queasy, but only just. How would she ever find common ground with someone like that. Compared to Ashlyn Silver, Keela felt, well, not drab, but definitely...something. Her brain searched for a word and found none. "I'll...I'll keep that in mind." It was the first time she'd ever felt genuinely uncomfortable with him since they'd first started getting to know one another. She wasn't sure what to say or where she might be able to go from there. Thankfully, Vin provided a subject change, and this one was much more to her liking. She shrugged, "I guess you could say that." She paused thoughtfully before continuing. "We all liked being out of doors as kids, so sometimes we'd all pile in there. It was like a giant camp out, but the adults could still keep an eye out." She grinned, "it was a win-win." How could she explain adequately the bonding they'd all done? She couldn't, and therefore decided not to try.

As she listened, she acknowledged that his logic made sense, even if the timing still felt a bit awkward. The idea of getting married only to spend several months apart. She nodded agreement, "ususally." She appeared to be contemplating something for several moments before she bit her lip, glancing up at him as though she knew he proably wouldn't like what she was about to say. "This isn't, I mean, you're not just suggesting this because you're worried about the distance are you?" There, she'd said it. It probably wouldn't go over well, but it was a sincere question, and one she wanted the answer to before she took the step in her mind. She wanted to marry him, but if he was planning it so soon because he was afraid of losing her, well, that was a problem. A Christmas wedding though! Keela's mind had already started to drift over details. The location was cloudy, but she pictured snow, everything colored in red, silver, and white. She could see it, just for a moment the image was almost tangible enough to be touched.

His thoughtfulness over her gift touched something inside her deeply. Especially given their conflict over how it happened. She hoped he'd forgiven her for the slip-up. Maybe this meant that he had. His curiosity over his gift amused her, and made her excited for the reveal later on. It wasn't necessarily that she minded her parents seeing what she'd done, but being around so many people didn't feel right for what she had in mind. When they'd made it upstairs and into her room, she smiled in the direction of the piano. "It was one of mum's early ones", she offered by way of explanation. "Great grandmum taught mum, and she taught me", Keela shrugged. "She might try to teach Briana too, but she's not really into playing all that much." She moved across the room, brushed the dust that had accumulated over the school year from the bench and sat down, patting the seat next to her. "If I play something for you, will you promise not to laugh?" She grinned, both pleased by his interest in her pictures and amused by the question. "We take turns with each new one, I think dad has them all written down somewhere." She pointed to one in particular. "That's Blitzen, he was born on Christmas day a few years ago, and Briana wanted to name him after one of Santa's reindeer." She smiled at the memory, before it turned a bit shy and she blushed.

Reaching into the sea of faces, she plucked one from near the top. "Now this one is one of my favorites." She'd been taking pictures out by the lake during the time she'd been doing her best to avoid him. When she'd first seen him, she had considered bolting for the nearest hiding spot, but something had stopped her. He had looked so happy in that moment, so care-free, and in spite of herself, Keela had wanted that moment to keep. Beethoven, obviously afronted at not being the center of attention, had begun pawing at a loose thread on her comforter. She picked him, cradling him like a baby. "There now", she scolded him playfully. "Is that better?"

[shava]

The idea of a camp out in a barn seemed both strange and entertaining to him, but he didn't ask any more about it. But the farm life was certainly different from what he had thought so far. She seemed okay with his thoughts, but then she asked a stinker question. He felt himself raising his hackles over it but he caught himself doing that too and remembered the dance. You could see him stop and take a deep breath before letting it out again. When he had a better grip on himself he turned to her and said quite seriously "Mova. I waited for you last year. I'll get you a whole summer and store up time with you like a fantastic book I can't put down. That will have to do it till I can see you again."

Slipping his hand over to the side of her neck he kissed the other side from top to bottom slowly while he spoke. "I just" kiss "have to be" kiss "so desirable" kiss"you come back very fast..." From there he kissed her cheek and by then he had reminded himself enough of what he wanted to forget the mistrust in her question. "This has nothing to do with trust, Mova, it has to do with what's possible. I can't take off time during school which leaves only summer and Christmas."

Seeing she wanted him to hear he nodded and said "Of course." He was about to walk there when they spoke about pictures and she blushed suddenly. Standing, she went over and pulled out a picture and showed him. He didn't recognize the angle, but he remembered he thought the reason for the smile. Blushing slightly himself he took it from her fingers for a moment. "I know what it was about. Ash was probably also somewhere doing the same." He watched her pick up the cat and smiled as he replaced the picture softly, a memory he also liked to keep as it was. "That was the day we got the owl about Zahara being born, love." He stepped over and rubbed the cat's jaw with his finger, but his eyes never left hers thinking about how happy he would be when they had their first little one.

It was a very personal moment with a lot of understanding between them.

Very quietly he said "I'll hold Beethoven if you would play for me, Keela. being inspired by you isn't very hard for me to enjoy..."

[kyla]

She saw the way his muscles tensed and flinched, expecting another go around like the Yule Ball. So it suprised her when he stopped suddenly, and appeared to willfully regain control over his temper. His response resonated somewhere deep down, as if he were speaking directly to her doubts and insecurities where he was concerned. He loved her, enough to marry her over Christmas even though it meant spending most of their first year of marriage apart. The realization left her feeling somewhat guilty for having asked in the first place, but glad that her doubts had been silenced once and for all. She felt tears well up, something that rarely happened, and she blinked them back. "There's always Hogsmeade, I can find out what weekends I won't be traveling and we can try to line those up."

Now that she wasn't thinking about all the reasons it might not work, her mind busily worked over what they could do to bridge the gap over the next year. "Maybe I could convince someone to do a piece on up and coming players at Hogwarts", she grinned. "Worth a shot, right?" Still, she had no illusions about what they faced in the coming year, distance was always hard. It just wouldn't be hard enough to beat them, she resolved. She had the ambition of a Slytherin, the loyalty of a Hufflepuff and the pure-cussed stubborness of a Gryffindor, surely it was enough to make a way for her to be with him, surely.

She reveled in the warmth of his lips on her skin, felt bolstered by the comfort of his touch. She tilted her head, allowing him better access. "Mmm", the sound was less carnal and more relaxed, as though his lips were working the tension out of her muscles. When he pulled back, she was smiling like a pampered animal. "You", she brushed her lips over his, wrapping her arms around his neck, "are very desirable, caro mio. I promise." She nodded as if conceding the point. "A Christmas wedding..." It was the first time she'd said the words out loud. There were so many possibilities, all of which had begun taking over the greater part of her concentration. It would have been clear to anyone watching her expression that she had momentarily zoned out. Giving herself a mental shake, she grinned up at him. "Sorry, just...planning, sort of." Mostly, she'd been daydreaming. While she hadn't planned on getting married this early in life, that didn't meant she hadn't been planning since she was small. Her mum's wedding had been beautiful, and while Keela didn't want anything quite that extravagant, she wanted to be as traditional as possible.

"So I guess we can rule out a small wedding", she pointed out with a grin. Their immediate families alone constituted most people's idea of a small wedding. Once dates were added, school friends, extended relatives, the list grew easily in her mind to well over two-hundred people. She shook her head. "I'll figure the details out eventually", she shrugged, "no need to get ahead of ourselves." While she now knew he would propose, he hadn't yet, and there were more immediate things on her mind. Keela's eyes widened when he explained the reason he'd been smiling. She'd understood instinctively that the moment was important, but hadn't known why. The look in his eyes as they gazed into hers said he was contemplating a family of a different sort, and Keela smiled warmly at the thought. Come chaos, come distance, come whatever difficulties they'd have, she was going to marry him, and they'd have a family some day. In that moment she was sure of it.

She felt almost disappointed when the moment broke, still, there was something she wanted to play for him, and she returned to the piano to settle onto the bench. Taking a deep breath, she poised both hands over the keys, fumbling through a stack of sheets propped on a small stand. "I wrote this last summer", the implication was clear. "I don't finish many of these, but this one almost wrote itself." She bit her lip, and with one last glance in his direction she turned her focus to the ivory and began to play. After a few moments, her voice joined the notes weaving through the harmony. When she had finished, she exhaled. "I started it after that first letter you sent, and finished it sometime around the end of summer." She smiled, "I'm sorry I made you wait a whole year to hear it", she laid her head on his shoulder,

(Note: For all of you credit Nazis out there, I obviously do not own/did not write "I Can't Help Falling in Love With You", the song was originally performed by Elvis Presley, I borrowed it because it fit the plot.... that is all<3)

[shava]

At the offer of Hogsmeade (which he had been half-betting on to be honest), he realized it was better that she had offered it in the first place. "That would be nice, though you'll be getting a lot of letters, Mova, I promise you!" The realization he needed to speak with her father came to him and he swallowed, not completely daunted but not quite prepared in advance in his mind yet. He chuckled about players and ducked his head. "Ha! Well I won't be taking that up as a career but it's fun that's for sure. They'd probably not want to do me because people won't believe the tints on paper from my hair alone."

Wondering if it might be smart to take some Italian classes while she was gone for that year, Vincent enjoyed her return attention, glad that he had persevered so long last year, striving to get her attention again. "Well there will be a lot of planning for sure, not sure I will be able to help much but I will where I can. I don't know how much planning you can do while off at your intern job though, we'll have to see." Suddenly he realized that he'd be leaning on her female relatives a lot for that, with two aunts and her mother involved it ought to be easier to tackle. The sudden realization he might be fielding a lot of tricky questions with the female attention was not something he had thought of till that moment.

Well, if nothing else he would learn a lot about her family this next year.

The rest needed no words to know they were thinking of children; her incidental picture represented a lot more then she had realized at the time and was doing more at the moment then she had realized as well. Slipping his hands over he rubbed the cat's head and then held out his arms so Keela could slip Beethoven into his. Rubbing the cats jaw he got a fairly good purr and grinned, thankful he had grown up around cats in the house! Following her over to the bench, he stood beside as she played, listening with a very large smile. He had known from that first kiss that she was special and a prize among women to seek out; she had resisted well, but he had been patient.

Some things were meant to be it seemed.

As she finished, he sat down beside her, cat rumbling in his arms and said simply "Maybe I need to change your name to Warbler, Mova, because that was very heart felt I can tell" and leaned into her for a kiss. As she put her head on his shoulder, Vincent felt a deep sense of contentment in the moment and did not want to move, though after a minute Beethoven gave one of those "Meh" sounds that was definitely a statement, but a statement of what he wasn't sure. Approval? He certainly hoped so. "Silly cat, can't you see you're not being left out of this?"

[kyla]

She smiled, feeling a pang at the idea of being away from him for extended periods. "We'll make it work love", she assured him. She wasn't sure how, but they would. She grinned, trying and failing to picture him as one of the world famous quidditch players she'd seen in the occasional match growing up. She laughed then, "you'd give the printing department a headache, that's for sure." She reached up and brushed the hair out of his eyes. "Still though, I can try." It made her wonder, how would they find time together? He'd have N.E.W.T.S next year, just as she did in a few weeks. She'd be travelling almost constantly for the better part of the first three months of the season, getting a feel for the work and her training. It was...daunting. She thought of the ways out of the school that still existed under the radar. Mum had found out about most of them during her time with Dumbledore's Army. "If you're willing to break a few rules, I might have another way we could see each other." She hesitated to even suggest it, since it required breaking the majority of the school's curfew rules, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

Keela hadn't thought about that. Not only would she be planning a wedding with a couple hundred guests in family alone, she'd be doing so while traveling abroad learning how to get paid to do what she loved. She'd have to talk to her mother about that after they made things official. She'd certainly need a lot of help to get an event that big planned right. Despite how eccentric Vin made his mother sound, Keela wondered if she might like to be involved as well. Between her aunts, her mother, his mother, and possibly his sisters, the burden lightened. It was still a lot to plan, but it felt a bit less overwhelming when she thought about all of the extra sets of hands. "Do you think your mum would want to help?" she asked him softly. "I might drop by from time to time, just to check in.while you're at school." It was a foreign concept, and the idea that this eccentric, ambitious, flambouyant woman would one day be her mother-in-law amused Keela greatly.

She was pleased by his reaction to her song, but also slightly embarrassed. She blushed, "it was" ,she confirmed. Impervious to the sentimental moment going on above him, Beethoven complained about the lack of attention. It amused Keela that Vin apparently understood the cat's frustration. Scratching his chin seemed to pacify him for the moment, and she grinned. "You've got the magic touch it seems, love." Standing, she crossed the room to touch her wand to the lamps in order to light them. "They're candles", she explained. "All the magic wreaks havoc with electrical wiring." The firelight cast dancing shadows on the wall next to the bed. Returning to him, she picked up Beethoven, cradled him carefully, and grinned. "Silly cat, you know I love you." She sat him on the bed carefully. "Does your family have any wedding traditions I should know about?" she asked. It had occurred to her as a possibility, and she thought it best to know sooner rather than later.

[shava]

Asking Vincent Silver-Moon if he was willing to break some rules for something he was already known to desire greatly seemed a bit ironic in a way. It certainly was a foolish question! "Well now since it involves you I think you could classify that as an automatic yes, darling one, just exactly what were you going to mention of trying out?" he was definitely all ears. "Mom? Um...yes I think she would be, but you'd have to owl her to find out where she was. During the school year she does a lot of traveling for her research; she could be anywhere in the world for weeks at a time except the two poles."

As the cat submitted to being loved on, Vincent chuckled at her touch comment. "Dad loves cats. he's got a collection of bigger ones outside the home by portakey, but he gives each child an Egyptian cat. They more or less own everyone and are scattered around. I got used to one demanding attention enough to know what they wanted early on." He half-watched as Keela moved around setting lights on and retrieving the cat who didn't go immediately to her arms, but purred once he did. Vin felt a bit of pride about that, though not much. Cats could be fickle if it pleased them. Then came up the question about traditions.

He blew air out of his cheeks and came over to her bed, lying down on his back beside her, one hand on her back waist as he thought about what he would like to do here. "Well sure, dad's side mostly I think. Mom likes to break things up a lot so she didn't tell me about any that I know of on her side. Ash will make up at least four to try and fool you. Double check what she and dad tell you with mom or me, they are terrible about it." Another moment of thought and he smiled with an idea. "Personally, I think we should make up our own."

She would want an example. "Say, the groom and bride the week of have to go rock skipping." A smile. "Revisit the reason they both fell in the first place we'll tell people. And the anniversaries shouldn't be on the day of, but a month which we have free time in for travel, nothing else happening say. On the actual date we'll just do a special dinner or something semi-normal."

[kyla]

She smiled, pleased, but still wary. If he used the passage too often, and got caught, they might close it off, and then they really would be in a mess. "Have you seen the one-eyed witch statue in the dungeons?" When he nodded, she continued. "Its actually a secret passage into Honeyduke's cellar. Mum told me about it during my fourth year. Apparently it was pretty common knowledge back when she and dad were in school." She took a breath. "The password is dissendium. Once you say it, the hump moves and there's a slide connecting to an underground tunnel." She gave him an apologetic look. "The only catch is that it takes about an hour on foot from one side to the other." Keela couldn't help thinking she might need to buy another owl once she'd saved up enough from her internship, international travel was a lot to expect of any owl, much less on a regular basis. "It'll be fun", she insisted, "maybe we'll even cross paths a time or two, that would make things easier." Keela wasn't sure how much international traveling she'd be doing once the season got underway. She really needed owl human resources and find out more about what would be expected of her.

She'd known he had experience with cats, but the image he painted was a bit more than that. Beethoven, for his part, had no problems benefiting from her boyfriend's expertise. "Its almost like having a baby really", she agreed. "Especially when they're young." Beethoven was almost five, but being being the kitten of two familiars, would likely live much longer than the expected lifespan of a normal cat. It was comforting, since Keela had grown exceptionally attached to him. Vin laid on her bed, and without a second thought, she laid down with him, turning onto her side to face him. She gazed up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Maybe we could do both", she offered. It was always good to keep with tradition, and she knew her mum and dad would have a few to suggest. She laughed when he mentioned Ashlyn. "I've been trying to think of a job to give her that isn't dangerous for anyone else." She shook her head ruefully, "nothing yet." She laid her head on his chest, sighing contentedly. Not to be left out, Beethoven wiggled his way in between them, settling comfortably by her stomach.

She smiled, touched. "That is a very sweet thought", she praised. "Maybe if we do it often enough you'll eventually beat me." She grinned up at him, "but I wouldn't count on it." Her eyes widened. "Take an entire month off every year?" Though in retrospect, December would have been the month to do it. Quidditch would be suspended for the holidays, and celebrations would come into play. The more she thought about it, the more sense it made. "I like it. Maybe we could take a trip around the world one year, cover all the ones we don't get to this summer." She laughed softly, "semi-normal...love, I don't think you're capable of semi-normal..." It made her wonder what the wedding would be like, combining his family with hers. Not that her family was boring by any means, but the differences between his siblings and hers were easily seen. The thought of trying to make sure everything went off without a hitch was starting to give her a headache, and she rubbed absently at the bridge of her nose.

[shava]

Reaching in a pocket, he pulled out a piece of paper and used his wand and a simple charm (who wanted to always carry quills around?) he made note ot the password and hump then tucked it away again. "Interesting. And how did you find that particular gem? you don't strike me as the sneak out of the castle type to begin with." Comparing cats to babies he was sure would upset most of theirs, but he chuckled. "Well except for opening doors, strong personalities, and insisting they are always right, sure."

"I think I'll let you hear what they come up with and then decide after we've heard all the offers. If we agree ahead of time to anything it could get messy fast and I for one don't want a three ring circus." Something he had heard of, but never seen. American phrase, but he understood the reason for it easy enough. A job? For Ash? His eyes momentarily crossed just thinking about that idea. "Uh....Okay you got me there, I have no idea where to put either her or Seth during that one."

She liked his idea about tradition. A lot of people were attached to it, but Vincent had always felt you should make it work for you if possible. "Speaking of that," he reached in his pocket and held up the watch she had given him downstairs and held it up in front of her where her head lay on his chest, "From the look you gave your dad, he knows something about this. Strikes me as something you all have done before?" He did chuckle at the way she responded to the month idea. "I was actually meaning so we would have things scattered throughout the year, not all in the same month really. I don't want to take away from it with Christmas, for instance, so choosing another month to celebrate in, still like just a particular day i mean, was more what i was thinking."

No matter how rich they might end up, there was only so much of a good thing of course.

"I think a week vacation as a celebration of our anniversary sounds like a lovely tradition to manage if we can. Have to see what your career does first I think."

[kyla]

Keela grinned, "I got into a conversation with mum one summer about her time at Hogwarts. It was pretty common for students to use the passage during that time with all the politics and stuff going on, especially D.A. members. They used the Shrieking Shack as a meeting spot before someone came across the room of requirement." Her expression turned mischievous. "I may or may not have used it ocassionally during the weeks before final exams. Sometimes its nice to just get out of the castle for a while, provided you don't get caught of course." She widened her eyes at him. "Opening doors? What kind of cats do you have?" She gave Beethoven a wary look, wondering if he had any special abilities she should be aware of. He merely stared back at her for a moment before losing interest and returning to washing his face. She smiled softly, shaking her head at him. "Okay, maybe I see what you mean."

She nodded emphatically. "From the pictures I've seen, mum and dad's wedding was a big, flashy event, but I suspect Gran had a lot to do with that." Given what she knew of her parents, and the way they'd spent their honeymoon, it was likely they'd have gone for something much more low-key. "I've always wanted to see one of those", she mentioned candidly. "Maybe we could try to catch one when we make it to the states." When rather than if, she wondered how long it would take her to get used to discussing their future this way. Not long, she hoped because she enjoyed daydreaming about the years to come. She knew his mum would want them to have kids straight off, but maybe the marriage would buy them some time. After all, once they were married, it was only a matter of time right? She laughed at his reaction to her mention of his sister. "In a secure room under lock and key?" she suggested, eyes sparkling with mirth. "Only joking, seriously though, can we confiscate their wands?" Ashlyn and Seth Silver-Moon, the twins were almost as infamous for their pranking as the Weasley twins had been in her mums time. One of the twins had died in the war, but the other still ran a highly successful joke shop in Hogsmeade, one Keela had frequented often in her first years at Hogwarts.

She suddenly looked a bit shy, she'd put a lot of thought into the magics she'd incorporated into his gift. It was a variation of the older spells cast on the necklace her mum wore. While the watch was definitely not a family heirloom, the magic was, and she hoped he understood her meaning. "Well, if you've noticed, mum wears a necklace shaped like a key most of the time." She waited for him to acknowledge this before continuing. "It has been passed down through generations. It only opens for family." She shrugged, "I can't really remember what's in it. I've only ever seen her open it once when I was very little." She took the watch out of his hands carefully, and popped the catch to reveal the watch face. "Mum's has several objects in it, these are more images with one exception. I wasn't sure how putting something inside it would affect the mechanisms", she explained. Cradling the watch carefully in her palm, she tapped it with her wand. "Revelio", she murmured softly, and the face began to change.

The numbers faded, the clock hands disappeared, and in their place a picture began to take shape. It had taken forever to imprint a wizarding photo this way, but she didn't mention that part. It had been taken at the Yule Ball, near the end, after they'd finally made up and the dust had settled. It had been offered to her a few days after the dance by a blushing third year Lion who also appeared to have quite the penchant for photography. In it, they had only just stopped dancing their last dance of the evening. Vin had taken her face in his hands, and the two of them had looked for all the world like no one else existed the moment before he'd kissed her. The picture was priceless to her, a reminder of one of the many reasons she loved photography. It was also a reminder that though they didn't always agree, they could still find common ground if they were willing to meet halfway."I'm not sure what his name was, but one of the third years brought me this after the Yule", she voiced her thoughts in part. "Good shot I think", she smiled cheekily at him, fighting the urge to be too sentimental.

When she tapped it again, the image melted away, replaced by what looked to be a tiny stone. This time she was blushing. "Remember the stone you kept after that first day by the lake?" she asked him. "What you have there, is mine." She'd had it in her hand when she bolted, and it had sat on her dresser up to the moment she'd placed it in his Christmas gift. It was the only actual object she'd put it, and it had taken several tries to get it right. She smiled at him, "see? I wasn't quite as unaffected as I wanted you to think." She closed the gap, pressed her lips to his before she pulled back, smilling. She tapped the face gently one final time. The image changed again, began to appear a line at a time as though drawn by an invisible hand. "Took forever to get it to do that" she admitted before offering an explanation. "This is a triquetra knot. There's a bit of controversy over what it means. From what I've been able to find in history books around the house, I use it as a representation of the unification of past, present and future." She took a deep breath, beginning to flush. "I wanted you to be able to look at this and remember that whatever our pasts may have been, we made it here, to the present, and I hope, to the future as well."

She couldn't help feeling a bit exposed. While there was no doubt in her mind that she both loved and was loved, it was still hard to show so much of her heart at once. The subject change was welcome. She took his hand, squeezed his fingers gently, and grinned. "I like that idea. I was thinking after the year is up, I might do freelance for a while, build my portfolio." It meant she could pick her assignments, be where she wanted to be, and most importantly that it would make it easier to be with him as often as possible. "I love quidditch, but I don't think I want to spend my life on the pitch taking shots of others flying." Actually, put like that, it was almost depressing. Still, it would be good experience. She'd just have to see where things went after that. "Have you thought about what you want to do after graduation, love?"