Sweet summer [Bella]

[Deleted]

It was a beautiful and sunny day in the beginning of their final summer before the young couple would start their final year at Hogwarts together. While this year had certainly been very eventfu and exciting [ they had found Artemis' birth parents, found his family's legacy and had fought off death eaters!] it was now time for the two lovers to relax and enjoy their fimal summer together before entering the adult world of wizarding for real. Artemis had plans on becoming the new Care of Magical Creatures professor, taking the position from Professor Andrews when he left to return to his original career of dragon keeping. Bella had plans to become an auror, something that was both exciting and nerve wracking.

It meant that the time that they spent together once they had graduated would be seriously limited. They would have to make the most of the time that they had left together, something that he intended to do completely.

Today he had sent an owl to Bella's house, asking her to meet him at the Leaky Cauldron that afternoon. He was dressed in a casual outfit and was waiting patiently for his girlfriend to show up at the pub. He had planned to take her on a small date, a walk through the city as they explored and tried to find something fun for the two of them to do together. Perhaps it wasn't the most exciting of dates for them to go on, but they would be together and that was all that mattered to them. He smiled softly as his hand moved to his pocket, patting it and feeling the small velvet box that lay within his pocket. At the end of the date, he would give Bella the special surprise that he had especially for her.

Merlin he hoped that she would like it.

[Bella Walsh]

The first week home had been something of a serious stress reliever, and Bella took a much needed break from the books and writing. Her mind was certainly less cluttered, spending time with her mother and Auror Finnegan to catch up with some of the hometown happenings. However, about halfway into the second week, she found herself missing her Artemis. It was difficult to fall asleep not having seen those beautiful eyes in a while. On the third week, an owl arrived at her house, startling Nadia who had taken to sitting on her perch in Bella's library in the house.

When she read the letter the owl brought, she smiled brightly and her heart skipped a beat. He wanted to see her? Of course she would go! Why would she not?!

Quickly, she showered, and put on a casual red dress and red shoes, very basic makeup, and leaving a note for her mother for when she returned from work. Since they had learned to appirate before leaving school, she took this opportunity to use the skill, vanishing with a loud pop from her house and arriving with a soft pop at the shops a block from the Leaky Cauldron.

Well, she hadn't quite perfected it yet! It was close enough!

She straightened her dress as she gathered her senses and clutched her small handbag that contained her wand (just in case, you know?) and walked toward the Leaky Cauldron with an excited smile. Dear Merlin, she could not believe how much she missed him when she could not see him every day. This was going to take some getting used to, but hey! That meant the times that they did get to see each other would be that much more special!

This school year was getting down to serious business. She had to focus on Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Transfiguration, Herbology, and Charms for the NEWTs. Anything else she could think of would be helpful, on top of Quidditch matches. This year was certainly going to be hard for her to see Artemis outside of possibly Herbology class and the Quidditch matches. That would be rough. They would have to take care to ensure that their relationship didn't wither with the added stress.

As she moved through the crowds to come in sight of the Leaky Cauldron and her eyes moved quickly to suddenly see him and her heart beat rapidly before she found herself quickly trotting toward him and an overjoyed smile came over her lips. "Artemis!" As she reached him, her arms wrapped around his neck and she hugged him gently. "Oh, darling, I've missed you!"

[Deleted]

He couldn't help but smile brightly when he saw the beauty that was his girlfriend walk through the doors of the pub. She was dressed in a very pretty red dress that looked absolutely amazing on her [but then again what didn't look amazing on her?] and red heels that gave her a few inches of height, making her appear slightly taller than she really was. Her pretty blond hair was styled simply and she wore very simple make up that did not distract from her beauty, instead adding to it and making her look absolutely stunning in his eyes.

She truly was his beautiful goddess.

His smile grew as she quickly trotted over to him, calling out his name in that voice that he loved so much, smiling at him with that smile that seemed to light up his world each and every single time he saw it. He bent down as she wrapped her arms around his neck, gently bringing him down in a gentle hug. He responded by allow his hands to settle gently on her waist and bending down to press a gentle kiss to the top of her head, smiling softly as the scent of her perfume filled his senses.

Merlin he had missed her so much.

" Oh, how I missed you my sweet goddess. I do not know how I'm able to tolerate being away from you for so long without going mad. I missed so much when we were apart..." His face nuzzled gently into her pale hair, staying like that for a small moment before again pulling away from her and taking her hand in his, raising it to his lips and pressing a gentle kiss to the back of it, his warm eyes practically glowing with happiness as he stared fondly at his girlfriend.

"But I am happy that we are together now love. Now for this date, I don't really have much planned. I figured that we could just walk around the city for a bit and just do whatever looked fun to us. I know that it isn't much love, but I thought it would be fun to just go where the wind takes us...how does that sound?"

He waited for her answer before smiling gently and offering his arm for her to take. " Shall we love?" He again waited for her answer before leading her out of pub and into the world outside. It was then that the two began to walk around, taking in the small sites and sounds of the world that was so unfamiliar to them.

[Bella Walsh]

"Love, I would go anywhere in the world with you. Anyplace is fine as long as we are together." A kiss pressed softly to his lips after she spoke and she looked up at him admiringly. There was nothing in the world that made her prouder than to be with him. As his arm lowered to her, pale hands clasped upon the lean muscle and she moved with him out into the street.

Truthfully, the Scot had not been in London very often, so the sights and sounds, the smells, were all very new to her. They passed by shops and restaurants, dozens of different people, cars, it was fascinating to Bella and she tried her best not to stare and call attention to herself. Despite that, people were gazing at them with looks of admiration and she could hear a plump elderly woman speak to her frizzy haired friend with horned glasses, "Oh, Sybil look. Aren't they simply the cutest couple?" "They are! And so respectful in public! You don't see that anymore these days." "Oh, he's such a handsome fellow, reminds me a touch of my grandson, Adam, though Adam would not ever be so courteous. And she looks like a very slim Marilyn Monroe." "You know, I was just thinking that."

She chanced a glance toward the two and smiled genuinely as both of her hands curled softly around the curve of his muscle, then she looked up at him, speaking so only he could hear, "You know, darling, I think I enjoy elder muggles. All of the ones I have ever seen in my life have been so polite. The newer generation however..." Green eyes darted across the road, where a twenty something was strutting down the road in a skirt so short it left little to the imagination and the near bottom of her backside was showing for all to see, with her fingers flying over a flat screen...thing...in her hands. She paid no attention to where she was going and nearly collided with a parked car! Then there were the boys near the muggle girl who sauntered with their pants so low that their underwear showed and she looked slightly disgusted, "Is it a muggle thing to look like that? Granted Ashlyn's clothing leaves little to guess, but even she wouldn't give the goods so easily."

If those sagging pants ever came to school, she would Leviosa them right up. That was disgusting. "What in the world happened to modesty?" Her eyes closed and shifted, glancing over at her side to see the most touching thing she had ever seen. An elderly man, his back bent with age, dressed in a crisp black suit and a bowler hat that covered white hair, shuffled unsteadliy alongside a woman with his hand clasping to hers. The woman was petite, thin, her back also slightly bent, dressed in a becoming green dress and blazer with a little pillbox hat atop her salt and pepper locks. They kept giving each other these sidelong glances as they moved down the sidewalk to a large cathedral together, where he stopped to pluck a purple flower from the lawns and place it in her hair. In their eyes, they were 18 again and they would never age to each other.

"That. That right there. That is the sort of love I have always wanted. I could be 90 and can't walk well, can't see well, my skin wrinkled, my body have lost its shape and youth, but it wouldn't matter. Every time he looks at me, he'll still fall deeper in love. Does that make me a bit too sentimental?" Her eyes moved away from the couple, who were helping each other up the cathedral stairs, leaning on each other and the iron railing for support, to look up at him. "I am positive that I have found that in you." She smiled softly, when she saw in the distance beyond him, a colorful flag moving through the air.

"What's over there?"

[Deleted]

He smiled softly down at his Bella when he heard her say that anywhere was fine for the two of them to go as long as they went there together before he was given a gentle kiss that made his heart race just as always. Merlin, Bella truly was perfect and he was truly lucky that she loved him as much as as she did. When they had made it outside and into the city, beginning their walk through the city. While Artemis had made it into the city a few times with his adopted parents before, he had never had the time to take the time and examine the surroundings properly. There were many different shops and people that were wandering about.

There were people that sitting down and eating in restaurants, and there were these strange metal contraptions that the muggles were riding in as they moved down the streets! It was truly something amazing and Artemis wished that he had thought to bring his camera! His sister would have been amazed! As they walked, eventually the two of them came across a small couple consisting of two elderly women who were gazing at them in admiration. He could hear them as they complemented both him and Bella, his cheeks turning a light shade of pink when they called him both courteous and handsome and he gave the two elderly women a shy smile, still not entirely used to being complemented.

His gaze moved to Bella again when he heard her whispering about liking the older muggles as opposed to the younger generation. When her eyes moved away from him, his gaze followed hers landing on a woman that was dressed in a skirt that was way too short to be considered proper clothing followed by men who had their pants so low on their bodies that their underwear was clearly showing. His eyes widened and his face turned red as he felt the embarrassment that they obviously did not have and his gaze immediately moved away from them. " Bloody Hell, I cannot believe that people actually dress like that! That's so embarrassing!!!"

He listened to Bella ask if that looking like that was strictly a muggle thing to look and dress like that. " I would assume so, you don't see any of our kind dressing like that, that much is for sure. " He paused when he heard Bella say something about the other Metamorphmagi that was at the school, Ashlyn Silver-Moon and he couldn't help but shudder slightly just at the mention of her name before nodding in agreement with what Bella had said.

That girl scared him.

Luckily, the subject changed when they came across another elderly couple, though this time it was both a man and a woman. It was obvious to everyone that watched them that they were still in love and the years had done nothing but strengthen the love that they shared. Bella spoke again and again he listened carefully, though his gaze remained on the couple as he watched them interact with one another before the two of them disappeared inside of the cathedral. " I will love you for the rest of my life and even beyond that. Even death will not stop me from loving you Bella. I am here for you and I always will be for as long as you want and will have me for."

When Bella asked what that was, his gaze followed hers before landing on a colorful flag. " I am not sure. Do you want to go see what's going on?" He waited until he got her answer before leading her over to the flag to see what was happening.

There was a large swarm of people that were all gathered into one area. Some were riding these giant metal contraptions and seemed to be having fun, laughing and even screaming on some of them. There were others that were playing what appeared to be some sort of muggle games and were receiving some sort of prizes whenever they won. It was something amazing and his eyes widened in slight awe as he tried to take in everything. " Would you like to stay here and explore for a while love?"

[Bella Walsh]

There was never a doubt in her mind of the extent of Artemis' love, but hearing it directly made her heart flutter in her chest and she looked up at him with a warm smile. Time didn't come close to having control over the love they held for each other. A love like this surely did not come around often. This, she knew. However, when he brought her toward the muggle gathering, her eyes widened in shock and curiousity. This was so...different than anything she had ever seen in her life.

"Oh! Love, can we stay? This looks like it could be so much fun." The whirling metal things did make her a little creeped out for the time being. The games however were nice and she walked alongside him, looking at everything there was to see.

There were so many colors and sounds and smells that was almost a sensory overload! She looked up at him with a sweet smile and asked softly, "What do you want to do first, darling? There's so much to look at!"

[Deleted]

" Of course we can my love. We can stay for as long as you want, besides this does look rather interesting doesn't it? I know I've never seen anything like this in my life before."

Widened brown eyes glanced around with an excited glow as they took in all of the sights, the smells and the sounds. He felt very much like a small child, being introduced to the wonders of the world all over again. Everything was so unfamiliar and so different from the world that he was used to that he felt as though he was lost in some sort of strange dream and yet as he glanced down at his beautiful soulmate, he knew that it was all real.When she asked him what it was that he wanted to do first he gave her a small smile.

" Honestly love? I don't know what there is to do! I've never even seen some of these things before so I wouldn't know where to start! Why don't we walk and take a look around? If you see anything that you want to do or try then just let me know and we'll do it. If not then we'll just walk around for a bit until we find something that appeals to us."

With that said, he led her around the small carnival making their way through the crowd of the muggles in search of something especially interesting for the two of them to do.

[Bella Walsh]

Her arms wrapped around his biscep and she smiled excitedly as she looked over at the booths full of games. However, her eyes lingered over one of the games just a little too long before the middle aged man sitting on the stool near it and honed in on her interest and immediately spoke out to them as they neared. "Hey, hey, hey! Step right up! What do you say, son? Win the pretty lady a teddy bear?" Bella blushed and moved closer to Artemis and giggled softly. When she looked up at the stuffed bears, her eyes were caught by a small one that was a rich sapphire blue and fluffy as could be.

"Oh, how cute!" She cooed softly. She cooed? What in the world? Goodness, she really must have missed him! The game looked easy enough. There was a tower of milk bottles and there were three balls, she assumed to throw at the bottles and knock them over.

Finally, she looked up at Artemis and giggled softly. "Do you want to give it a try? It might be fun to see how you do!" Maybe she would try too.

[Deleted]

Artemis, as perceptive as he always was when it came to Bella, noticed when the pace at which she was walking began to slow down. His gaze moved from in front of him, to glancing at Bella to see if anything was wrong or if something had managed to catch her attention. Thankfully, it was the latter and there was not anyone causing any sort of problems for her. His eyes followed her train of vision and landed on what appeared to be a game of sorts. When the man who was running the stand had zoned in on his girlfriend's interest, he called out to Artemis trying to convince the other to win a teddy bear for Bella.

His eyes moved to glance at her again only to see that she was staring at something already. His eyes moved again to follow her line of vision only to see that she had her gaze set on a teddy bear that was a beautiful blue color and was very, very fluffy. A small smile crossed his lips and a determined fire built in his eyes as he gazed at the bear, his mind already completely made up.

He was going to try and win that teddy bear for Bella.

They walked closer to the game and Artemis' eyes landed on a pile of milk bottles that were formed into a tower of sorts. There were three balls and it was assumed that he would have to knock over the bottles using the balls that were given to him. When Bella asked if he wanted to try, he smiled at her before nodding and glancing at the man. " I would like to try please sir." After paying the man with some of the muggle money that he had acquired through the money exchange in the pub [he had been sure to get more than enough for whatever it was that they wanted to do for the day.] He picked up a single ball and glanced at the bottles that had been stacked up, doing his best to aim before throwing the ball at the tower of milkbottles.

Only to have it miss completely.

Artemis' face burned slightly from embarassment before he picked up the second ball and tried again, only to have the ball not even make it to the small pile of bottles this time. This time he could hear a snicker and his eyes turned to the man who was running the stand, frowning in embarassment as the man was trying to hold himself back from full out laughing at the embarassed boy. He picked up the last ball and threw it again, this time managing to knock over the top bottle off of the pile.

Oh sweet merlin this wasn't going to be easy.

----------- A Short While Later------------

He had tried, he really had but now he was too embarassed. The man that was running the stand was full out laughing at him now, not even trying to hold back his amusement at the boy's admittedly humourous various attempts at trying to win the bear for his girlfriend. Looking at Bella with an embarassed expression, he offered some muggle money to her asking quietly with his head ducked if she would like to play the game too.

[Bella Walsh]

When Artemis said he wanted to try, Bella let go of his arm and she held onto her clutch, watching him with an encouraging glance. The first ball missed entirely, and she smiled softly, encouraging him further. The second didn't even come close, and she chuckled softly, rubbing his shoulder with a gentle hand. Third ball knocked one, and she clapped gently, "Good try, love. Good try!"

~~~~~~~~A Short Time Later~~~~~~~~

Oh, poor Artemis! He'd been trying so hard and the man at the booth was certainly being a little rude for laughing so hard. When he handed her the dollar, she handed it to the man and he tried to be a little cute toward her. "I suggest you move up a bit, little lady, this is a tricky game. Go ahead, give it a try."

Rather than moving up to the counter, she threw the first ball at the milk bottles and it went sailing over the bottles. The second did not make it to the bottles, and she began to become more aware of the laughing and the suggestions that she move closer. A fleeting flash of determination sparked up in her eyes and this time she stepped out of the heeled shoes that she wore (and shrank a good 4 inches) before her arm cocked back and the ball hurtled at the milk bottles, sending them all scattering through the air. One of the bottom pins sailed to the next display of pins and knocked them all to the ground as well. She chuckled before she stepped up into her shoes again and smoothed a hand over her hair as the formerly laughing man was forced into silence.

Granted, he wore the same shocked expression as Artemis did and she offered a sweet smile. She never looked quite as strong as she was, granted she had once thrown a well placed punch and shattered the jaw of a Death Eater. She sometimes forgot that she had a bit of spunk hidden beneath her exterior that Artemis seemed to love.

"That...how...I can't even knock those down that hard. You did two at once!"

Bella's lips pulled into a decadently sweet smile and she answered in a sweet and delicate voice, "Then I suggest you move up a bit, little lady." Before winking one brilliant green eye and taking the blue fuzzy bear from his shocked fingers and using its soft hand to poke at Artemis' chest with a soft giggle. This time the man only could look incrediously at the blonde and shake his head as he set the bottles back up.

She handed the soft bear to Artemis with a giggle, and smiled up at him. "Knut for your thoughts, love."

[Deleted]

While the fact that his lover was not laughing at him the way that the older man was made him feel slightly better, he was still slightly embarassed that he could not win the bear that she had obviously really wanted for her. He felt like a bad boyfriend and as he offered the money to her so that she could try the game, he couldn't help but frown slightly as he heard that man make those remarks toward his girlfriend, treating her as though she was a dainty little thing and trying to act cute for her as she got ready to throw her first ball.

Merlin, he hoped that Bella won just so she would shut the man up.

He watched with great respect as Bella took her first throw without taking so much as a single step forward. Granted, it sailed over the top of the bottles but it was still something that he admired. " Good try love!" He encouraged her, just as she had encouraged him when he had attempted to win at the game. When she took her second throw with the ball this one did not even make it to the bottles, something that made the man laugh even harder as the man made more suggestions for her to move toward the counter. The comments grated at his patience and eventually the poor boy had had enough.

" Perhaps she would do better if you stopped laughing at her! You brits always pride yourselves on being gentlemen so why don't you act the part and keep quiet!" He flushed slightly from embarassment again but his dark eyes burned. He did not like it when others laughed at or looked down on his girlfriend. Did not like it at all. He watched quietly as Bella's eyes flashed with determination before she stepped out of her heeled shoes, cocked her arm back and threw the ball forward, gasping quietly when it hit the bottles, not only knocking down that one pile but also knocking down the one directly next to it as well! " W-Woah Bella!!! That was excellent!"

He couldn't help but laugh when he saw the man's startled expression and listened to Bella as she spoke to the man, telling him that he should move up to the counter if he couldn't do what she had done before taking the bear from his hands and moving away from the booth, Artemis still looking down at his girlfriend in shock, snapping out of it when she both handed the bear to and spoke to him. " Y-You...T-That was amazing Bella!!! You really shut him up!!!! I'm so proud of you!!!" He leaned down to press a gentle kiss to her forehead. "Come now let's go and see what else there is to do, alright?"

[Bella Walsh]

Bella giggled softly at the tone of shock and admiration in his voice when he spoke, leaning up into the soft press of his lips with a proud smile. "Well, I have to have some strength for the upcoming [Quidditch] season. It just irritates me when people think just because I look like a delicate little flower that I must be one. It makes me happy to silence people like that, love! Plus, I do so love how much your eyes light up when you're proud." She smiled up at him and softly caressed his cheek.

When he asked to find something else to do, she nodded swiftly and her arm slid loosely around his waist. "Of course, my sweet prince. There must be dozens of things to do here! It's all a matter of picking something that looks interesting." She smiled and took his arm again, moving with him again.

One of the things that Bella enjoyed doing, was people watching. As they moved through the odd gathering of muggles, Bella found herself admiring the crowds. Families with very young children resting in the shade, small children with their game prizes clenched in their hands, indifferent teens poking those flat...things...again, some older ladies with lemonade underneath a shelter, men with beer eyeing the ladies. Goodness. Was this something that appealed to everyone?

The thing that bothered her, however, was the lack of respect that it seemed that people their own ages had for each other and their parents. She watched another couple noticeably press tongues down each other's throats in front of so many people and it made her stomach churn. She looked away and shook her head quickly. "Culture shock. Goodness. There is no way I would want my children snogging like that in public!" They did not snog in public, perhaps the soft, chaste kisses would be given in public, but nothing more. Such intimate actions were saved for far less social gatherings. Intimacy required intimacy, did it not? No one taught that to these muggles apparantly.

She turned her eyes only to see the muggle male grip the muggle female's backside and her mouth fell open and she averted her eyes and they moved away from them and the look of shock on her face was having trouble fading. "Culture shock! That is beyond disrespectful! In a place so full of people?! Granted, I'm sure Onyx Holland gripped someone's backside like that before, but it was considerably less...cheap. Oh, yes, I heard from Lili that he did that to Ashlyn at the Yule Ball, but it was to steady her mid tango step." That was different. Not even the most promiscous couple in the school dared to treat each other like that.

Her cheek pressed to the curve of his arm softly before she started noticing some of the parents of those hormonal teens watching them with gestures that suggested they wished their children would act like "that sweet couple over there". Bella looked up at Artemis and asked softly, "I wonder what they learn at home or at school that makes such things okay. Whatever it is, our culture absolutely missed it."

The next thing that caught Bella's eye was something that a muggle man was attempting. It was another game, testing one's strength. It was the assumption that if one could ring the bell by hitting the lever with the mallet...one would win. "I wonder if either of us could actually make it ring. The muggles seem to have trouble with it...maybe it's broken?"

[Deleted]

The young man was smart enough to know which topics that he should avoid talking about with others and quidditch was always one of them. His girlfriend played for the Hufflepuff house team while his sister played for the Ravenclaw house team and while he usually chose to root for them individually when their house teams were playing against Slytherin or Gryffindor, it was when they faced each other that Artemis had learned to keep his mouth shut. If he rooted for Bella, he was called a traitor and was given dirty looks and shunned by his fellow housemates for the rest of the game and on top of all of that, he felt like he was betraying his beloved sister. If he rooted for his sister, then he felt like he wasn't supporting his beloved and that hurt just as bad.

So he decided to become and stay neutral during those particular matches.

" I am always proud of you regardless of what you say or do, love. You are my amazing Bella, that's all the reason I need to be proud." His eyes stared at her warmly for a few minuted before they closed and he leaned into her gentle touch, enjoying it for just a moment. It was funny how the boy who had previously shied away from any physical contact in the past had become a man who only enjoyed the touches of his Bella. He smiled softly and opened his eyes as Bella said that they could move on and again he offered her his arm to take before they were walking through the crowds again.

When Bella spoke again, his eyes glanced at the couple that she was looking at for merely a second before turning away in slight disgust. Honestly! What was it that made muggles and wizards so different culturally that made acts like that acceptable to muggles in public places? He knew for a fact that if any wizard tried doing something like that out in a public place that they would likely be stopped and embarrassed by either their parents or an adult almost immediately. " Our children would know better than to try something like that in a public place. Especially in front of us. I would rip them apart so fast that they wouldn't know what hit them and the boy or girl that had their hands on my child would get a serious talking to!" He was serious about that too. Like hell he would let his kids be treated such a way in public.

Or private. Until they were married. Or 40. Whichever came first really.

His eyes had accidentally strayed to the indecent couple again, his eyes widening almost comically as he saw the man grip the woman's rear. His gaze immediately tore away from the two again, his mouth opening and closing in shock as he listened to Bella speak again. " Why would she allow herself to be treated in such a way is a better question! If he tried such a thing on a witch he'd be hexed for sure!" He fell quiet again as she talked before nodding in agreement. " I suppose it's a good thing though. I really wouldn't like to see couples snogging all over the school and in Hogsmeade. Or anywhere else in our world really..."

When something caught Bella's eye again, he smiled and again followed her gaze, this time landing on something that a muggle man was trying. It appeared to be some sort of strength game and it seemed as though the muggles were having a hard time winning the game. When Bella spoke again, Artemis smiled. " Want to try it?" He waited for her answer before leading her over to the game where they waited until it was their turn to go. Artemis paid the vendor so that they both would have one turn each before they walked up to the machine and Artemis was handed the mallet type thing [which was a lot heavier than he had previously thought] and got ready for his turn.

When he finally lifted the mallet and hit the lever, the little thing went up about a little bit higher then half way before falling back down to the ground. Artemis smiled proudly at the accomplishment before offering the mallet to Bella. " The mallet is a bit heavier then it looks love, I know you can handle it but I just thought I'd warn you."

[Bella Walsh]

She smiled, watching Artemis try the game. And as he swung, her eyes lowered to the platform that the target was on. The base moved and she found herself watching the weight sail upward. He was either stronger than some of the muggles that had tried to ring the bell...or there was a trick. As he handed her the mallet to try, she was almost astounded with how heavy it was. At this point, she figured out the trick to the game. It wasn't so much about your strength as it was technique. She even kept her shoes on for this one and held the mallet as close to the end as she was able to and still keep a tight grip on the mallet. The mallet was pulled up and held in both extended arms over her head.

About this time, people were starting to watch. They were shocked to see the delicate girl even able to hold the mallet.

She slowly brought it down, looked, shook her head then adjusted where she was standing so that the mallet would land dead center. When she was confident in her positioning, she brought the mallet back up over her head and let her body curve back slightly to let the natural weight and momentum do the work for her. In actuality, she wasn't that strong, just smart in figuring out things like this. When she brought the mallet down, the momentum brought the heavy mallet down in the center of the target and she didn't have to even put any real strength behind it to see the little weight soar up and ring the bell.

The shocked faces made her blush darkly as she handed the mallet back to the man sitting at the game, who handed her a silvery dog and she looked up at Artemis. "To be fair, there was a trick to that one. I was watching the platform when you hit it, there is something in the way its pressurized to work well with the weight of the mallet, but you have to hit dead center. The mallet is that heavy for a reason. When it gains a good momentum...and hits dead center...you really don't have to be terribly strong to make it work."

That one was physics.

She drew him close and smiled, "The trick to the milk jugs...those things are super heavy. I noticed that one when I saw you get the top one off. The key of the game is not to hit the intersection, but the bottom. If you hit between the bottom two bottles, the whole thing collapses. I only got the other tower because I was angry when I threw it and the bottle shot over and wiped the other bottom bottles away."

Ha ha! Logic wins again!

[Deleted]

He watched with a curious gaze as Bella took the mallet from him, holding it as close to the edge as she could before looking at the lever with a calculating gaze, bringing the mallet up and above her head before looking down, shaking her head, and repositioning herself so that she was standing somewhere just a little bit different each and every time. This had happened a few times before Bella had finally brought it over her head, allowing her back to curve and bringing the mallet down on the very center of the lever with a very hard swing.

He watched with wide eyes as the force from the hit caused the weight to soar all the way up before hitting the bell and causing it to ring loudly. Artemis stared at his girlfriend with a surprised expression on his face, not quite believing what it was that he had just seen. His girlfriend had just beaten him in a game that was supposed to revolve around brute strength.

Well he supposed that no one could question who truly wore the pants in this relationship anymore.

When Bella had returned the mallet and had received her prize, she began speaking quietly to him, telling him that there had been some sort of tricks behind the games that the two of them had played so far. It turns out that he had been working too hard at trying to win the games for her and that there were tricks for each game that they had played. He would have won the mallet game had he hit the very center of the lever and he would have won the ball throwing game if he had simply aimed for the bottom of the pile.

Was there really a trick for all of the games here?

As the two made their way away from the mallet game, they came across a game where muggles were trying to hook rings around a bunch of glass bottles. His eyes locked on the game trying to figure it out for a moment before glancing at Bella. " What's the trick behind this one love?"