Friends are those rare people who ask us how we are ...
Miles,
I’m sure you’ve heard by now, but I’ve gone and bought a Quidditch team. I’ve been in the business of cleaning house and I’m looking for a new solicitor to represent the club. I know you’re not that kind of lawyer, darling, but if you could send me some recommendations, I’d kiss you on a Saturday night sometime.
Pansy
*~*~*
Pansy,
There’s not a man alive who could resist your kisses, love. I’ll be happy to provide a list of legal brains nearly equal to mine when I take you to dinner. Saturday? I’ll pick you up at half seven, after I put the baby to bed.
Miles
*~*~*
When the bloody hell did you knock someone up!? Baby? I believe you’ve some explaining to do.
I’ll see you on Saturday.
Pansy
*~*~*
Normally working in the solarium with her roses was something that calmed and relaxed Pansy, but as she strode through the rows of her potted lovelies, spraying them with a potion she’d mixed to help them grow, she was nothing but agitated.
Miles had a baby to care for? The very thought of a child made Pansy’s skin prickle, though theoretically she knew she would have some someday regardless of whether she had a man or not. It was imperative that the Parkinson name endured.
Still. A baby. A baby.
When the wards pricked at her skin signaling Miles’ arrival, Pansy turned on her heel and stalked toward the entry, pulling open the door not half a minute later to find a very well groomed, perfectly pressed solicitor waiting for her.
“Is it yours?” she asked, not really able to wait any longer. That she’d had to wait so many days was quite long enough.
Miles’ brow creased and he looked down at himself curiously. “Is what mine? The suit? I bought it about a month ago.” What was she on about?
Pansy’s lips thinned at the obtuse comments. “The baby,” she clarified. “The one you had to put down before you came? The one you didn’t have the last time we went for drinks and dinner?”
“Oh. The baby.” Any other time Miles would’ve been tempted to spin a tale for Pansy just to wind her up a bit, but there was nothing funny or amusing about the reason Kiss was in his care and he couldn’t bring himself to joke about it. His mien was somber and his eyes found the floor. “No, she isn’t mine. Not the way you mean. My friend Reese is Kiss’ mother but for the time being I am her guardian.”
Pansy raised a brow. “That sounds like a longer story than can be told on my stoop,” she said before summoning her hand bag and stepping outside with him and slipping her hand into the crook of his arm. “I think I’ll need a drink to hear the details. Shall we?”
With a nod, Miles covered her hand with his and whisked them away to Gulliver’s Glen. There was little conversation as they were taken to their table and he waited until their drinks were brought and their orders taken before broaching the subject again.
He took a sip of his wine, savoring the flavor a moment as he readied himself to launch once again into the painful topic of Reese’s abduction. “I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned my friend Reese before.” Miles mouth curled into a tiny smile as he spoke of her. “Reese is... Well, she’s a bit unusual. People often mistake her ethereal demeanor as ignorance, but she actually quite bright. What she isn’t is very good with the mundane day to day things. She requires a little looking after and that’s been my job for the last several years. I manage her estate and keep tabs on her. Or I thought that’s what I did until it was proven just what a shoddy job I’d done.”
Pansy raised a brow at his last statement, though said nothing as she continued to sip on her white wine. Miles hadn’t, in fact, mentioned a ‘Reese’ before, but it was quite apparent by the way he talked of her and the intonations of his voice, that he was very fond of her - or more.
His face hardened with anger and remorse as he continued, guilt burning a hole in his stomach. “Last September a man who she used to know, who used to mistreat Reese horribly until she finally escaped from him, abducted her from her home. I didn’t even know this man existed. I’d never thought to ask what had happened in the years between Hogwarts and when she came back into my life. Reese managed to fight this guy, or whoever he got to take her, long enough for her elf to escape with Kiss. She sent them to me,” Miles voice cracked slightly, “because I’m the one who fixes things for her.”
It was in Pansy's nature to make light of serious matters, usually through derision or mockery, but she found that there was no sharp barb or cutting statement to break the tension that had settled. She identified all too well with the 'mistreatment' Miles had hinted at, and it was certainly nothing to make light of. In fact, the primary emotion burning in her chest was anger. Men such as he described - self-entitled, powerful men who thought they were a law unto themselves - made her sick, and the reminder of the attentions she had suffered at the hands of such men during the war, of Vincent, made goose pimples dimple her arms.
"Kiss must be the child then," she finally said, voice even despite the emotion churning beneath the surface. "And I'm assuming there's no leads on Miss Ashley?"
A quick shake of his head affirmed what she already knew. The second question Pansy asked she was fairly sure she knew the answer to as well. "You're in love with her, aren't you?"
Miles looked at her, eyes wide. “Bugger all, Pansy, there’s not an ounce of subtlety in you.” Tossing back the rest of the wine in his glass, he nodded. “It appears that I am, not that it does me a bit of good. Reese is gone with no immediate hope of returning, and even if she did there’s already a man in her life. Callum bloody Wildsmith’s in love with her, too.”
He hadn’t intended to spend the evening spilling his pitiful story to his old friend, but Miles couldn’t deny he was glad to have someone to tell. It had been eating him alive for months.
"The Wildsmith heir?” Pansy asked, a single brow rising. “For someone perceived to be unusual and ignorant by most people, she seems so have enchanted two very eligible men." She couldn't help it. She had to make some light of the situation.
At Miles' glare, however, she waved him off and continued in a different direction. "If all is as you say, then she is quite alive. That man wouldn’t have gone through the trouble to abduct her only to dispose of her," she told him levelly. She should know. When Vincent had abducted her, disposal had been the last thing on his mind. He’d wanted her willing, but had been prepared to take her unwilling. Fortunately Pansy had been rescued before it’d come to that. Miles’ Reese would not be so lucky though, not so many months later.
“Who do you have looking for her?”
“Jonathan Savage is the lead Auror on the case.” Miles knew the man had been doing everything he could on the case, but it had gone nowhere. It was difficult to say if he hoped Pansy was right in her assessment than Reese was still alive. Of course Miles wanted her to be, but thinking about what she was likely enduring was almost as horrific as imagining she was dead.
“You’ve other connections than officials at the Ministry,” Pansy pointed out, quite surprised that Miles hadn’t already taken advantage of his dirty blood ties with the Liberi. She didn’t approve of him being affiliated with the group, but that didn’t mean he shouldn’t take advantage of what was at his disposal. “And I do as well. I’ll ask some questions, and perhaps might be able to dig something up in father’s office. He kept meticulous records.” She shrugged slightly, a delicate rise and fall of narrow shoulders. “There may be something useful. He had contacts all over the world that were just as dirty and terrible as he was.”
Miles sighed. “My ‘connections’ aren’t very keen on me at the moment,” he admitted. He’d regretted his association with the Liberi for a couple years now and since the night of the attack in Hogsmeade two Halloweens ago, he’d been distancing himself. “I’ve rebuffed a number of their requests. It’s not likely they’d be willing to go out of their way to do me a favor. Thank you for offering to check through your father’s things, though.”
“Of course.” She had never approved of Miles’ involvement with the Liberi. They were dirty, and their politics were dirty. Just because their veneer was cleaner than the terrifying Death Eater masks her father and his cronies had worn, didn’t mean they were any different. Pansy was glad to hear that Miles seemed to be pulling away from their ideals, but it was a dangerous game.
She set down her wine glass and leaned across the table then. “You should be keen how you go about rebuffing such people. You know I hate what you’ve gotten yourself into, but if you don’t at least play your part, then they’ll deal with you the same way they’ve used you to deal with the unwanted detritus.” Her voice was low and only carried to him. “You should have a care.”
She leaned back then and fingered her wine glass. “Are you a son of Slytherin or not? Play the game and get what you need out of them.”
He knew she was right, but he’d been trying so hard to ween the group from his life. It was partly do to his own conscience. He didn’t like the things it had come out the Liberi were involved in. A large part of the reason was also that he knew Reese didn’t like the ‘sticky darkness’ that she could see touching him. It made her uneasy and the thought of getting back into that world, particularly while Reese’s child was in his care... Miles didn’t like it and he knew Reese wouldn’t like it. But what good did it do him to free himself of the darkness for Reese if she was stuck somewhere that it surrounded her?
“I’ll make some inquiries,” he said at last. There were no easy answers in this situation, and the weight of it showed on his face. “I have to think about Kiss, though. I won’t tolerate those people near her.”
“Nor should you,” Pansy said before sipping her wine and then continuing moments later. “I have faith that you will be able to keep such things separate. And, if you should need, I would be happy to care for the little one while you do what needs doing.” Gods. She wouldn’t make such an offer to anyone else. She had little experience with children, and Gwen’s little heathen was enough to make any woman wish she was barren. Miles was her friend though. She had few friends, and Pansy would go to the ends of the earth for those few.
There were few things that could have lightened Miles mood just then, but hearing Pansy Parkinson offer to babysit appeared to be one of them. He couldn’t have stopped the laughter that burst forth, though he sobered quickly when Pansy’s gaze turned hard. With a half-smile, he raised his hands in a show of appeasement. “Thank you, Pansy. I appreciate the offer and I will keep it in mind.” Miles reached over and took her hand, pressing a kiss to the back of it. The smile still lingered, but his voice was sincere when he continued, “You’re a lovely, brilliant, surprising woman, and I count myself very lucky to call you a friend.”
“As you should,” Pansy sniffed. She was still put out at his laughter, but the words appeased her. For now.
SUMMARY: Miles tells Pansy about his worries concerning Reese. They reaffirm their friendship as only old friends can.
I’m sure you’ve heard by now, but I’ve gone and bought a Quidditch team. I’ve been in the business of cleaning house and I’m looking for a new solicitor to represent the club. I know you’re not that kind of lawyer, darling, but if you could send me some recommendations, I’d kiss you on a Saturday night sometime.
Pansy
*~*~*
Pansy,
There’s not a man alive who could resist your kisses, love. I’ll be happy to provide a list of legal brains nearly equal to mine when I take you to dinner. Saturday? I’ll pick you up at half seven, after I put the baby to bed.
Miles
*~*~*
When the bloody hell did you knock someone up!? Baby? I believe you’ve some explaining to do.
I’ll see you on Saturday.
Pansy
*~*~*
Normally working in the solarium with her roses was something that calmed and relaxed Pansy, but as she strode through the rows of her potted lovelies, spraying them with a potion she’d mixed to help them grow, she was nothing but agitated.
Miles had a baby to care for? The very thought of a child made Pansy’s skin prickle, though theoretically she knew she would have some someday regardless of whether she had a man or not. It was imperative that the Parkinson name endured.
Still. A baby. A baby.
When the wards pricked at her skin signaling Miles’ arrival, Pansy turned on her heel and stalked toward the entry, pulling open the door not half a minute later to find a very well groomed, perfectly pressed solicitor waiting for her.
“Is it yours?” she asked, not really able to wait any longer. That she’d had to wait so many days was quite long enough.
Miles’ brow creased and he looked down at himself curiously. “Is what mine? The suit? I bought it about a month ago.” What was she on about?
Pansy’s lips thinned at the obtuse comments. “The baby,” she clarified. “The one you had to put down before you came? The one you didn’t have the last time we went for drinks and dinner?”
“Oh. The baby.” Any other time Miles would’ve been tempted to spin a tale for Pansy just to wind her up a bit, but there was nothing funny or amusing about the reason Kiss was in his care and he couldn’t bring himself to joke about it. His mien was somber and his eyes found the floor. “No, she isn’t mine. Not the way you mean. My friend Reese is Kiss’ mother but for the time being I am her guardian.”
Pansy raised a brow. “That sounds like a longer story than can be told on my stoop,” she said before summoning her hand bag and stepping outside with him and slipping her hand into the crook of his arm. “I think I’ll need a drink to hear the details. Shall we?”
With a nod, Miles covered her hand with his and whisked them away to Gulliver’s Glen. There was little conversation as they were taken to their table and he waited until their drinks were brought and their orders taken before broaching the subject again.
He took a sip of his wine, savoring the flavor a moment as he readied himself to launch once again into the painful topic of Reese’s abduction. “I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned my friend Reese before.” Miles mouth curled into a tiny smile as he spoke of her. “Reese is... Well, she’s a bit unusual. People often mistake her ethereal demeanor as ignorance, but she actually quite bright. What she isn’t is very good with the mundane day to day things. She requires a little looking after and that’s been my job for the last several years. I manage her estate and keep tabs on her. Or I thought that’s what I did until it was proven just what a shoddy job I’d done.”
Pansy raised a brow at his last statement, though said nothing as she continued to sip on her white wine. Miles hadn’t, in fact, mentioned a ‘Reese’ before, but it was quite apparent by the way he talked of her and the intonations of his voice, that he was very fond of her - or more.
His face hardened with anger and remorse as he continued, guilt burning a hole in his stomach. “Last September a man who she used to know, who used to mistreat Reese horribly until she finally escaped from him, abducted her from her home. I didn’t even know this man existed. I’d never thought to ask what had happened in the years between Hogwarts and when she came back into my life. Reese managed to fight this guy, or whoever he got to take her, long enough for her elf to escape with Kiss. She sent them to me,” Miles voice cracked slightly, “because I’m the one who fixes things for her.”
It was in Pansy's nature to make light of serious matters, usually through derision or mockery, but she found that there was no sharp barb or cutting statement to break the tension that had settled. She identified all too well with the 'mistreatment' Miles had hinted at, and it was certainly nothing to make light of. In fact, the primary emotion burning in her chest was anger. Men such as he described - self-entitled, powerful men who thought they were a law unto themselves - made her sick, and the reminder of the attentions she had suffered at the hands of such men during the war, of Vincent, made goose pimples dimple her arms.
"Kiss must be the child then," she finally said, voice even despite the emotion churning beneath the surface. "And I'm assuming there's no leads on Miss Ashley?"
A quick shake of his head affirmed what she already knew. The second question Pansy asked she was fairly sure she knew the answer to as well. "You're in love with her, aren't you?"
Miles looked at her, eyes wide. “Bugger all, Pansy, there’s not an ounce of subtlety in you.” Tossing back the rest of the wine in his glass, he nodded. “It appears that I am, not that it does me a bit of good. Reese is gone with no immediate hope of returning, and even if she did there’s already a man in her life. Callum bloody Wildsmith’s in love with her, too.”
He hadn’t intended to spend the evening spilling his pitiful story to his old friend, but Miles couldn’t deny he was glad to have someone to tell. It had been eating him alive for months.
"The Wildsmith heir?” Pansy asked, a single brow rising. “For someone perceived to be unusual and ignorant by most people, she seems so have enchanted two very eligible men." She couldn't help it. She had to make some light of the situation.
At Miles' glare, however, she waved him off and continued in a different direction. "If all is as you say, then she is quite alive. That man wouldn’t have gone through the trouble to abduct her only to dispose of her," she told him levelly. She should know. When Vincent had abducted her, disposal had been the last thing on his mind. He’d wanted her willing, but had been prepared to take her unwilling. Fortunately Pansy had been rescued before it’d come to that. Miles’ Reese would not be so lucky though, not so many months later.
“Who do you have looking for her?”
“Jonathan Savage is the lead Auror on the case.” Miles knew the man had been doing everything he could on the case, but it had gone nowhere. It was difficult to say if he hoped Pansy was right in her assessment than Reese was still alive. Of course Miles wanted her to be, but thinking about what she was likely enduring was almost as horrific as imagining she was dead.
“You’ve other connections than officials at the Ministry,” Pansy pointed out, quite surprised that Miles hadn’t already taken advantage of his dirty blood ties with the Liberi. She didn’t approve of him being affiliated with the group, but that didn’t mean he shouldn’t take advantage of what was at his disposal. “And I do as well. I’ll ask some questions, and perhaps might be able to dig something up in father’s office. He kept meticulous records.” She shrugged slightly, a delicate rise and fall of narrow shoulders. “There may be something useful. He had contacts all over the world that were just as dirty and terrible as he was.”
Miles sighed. “My ‘connections’ aren’t very keen on me at the moment,” he admitted. He’d regretted his association with the Liberi for a couple years now and since the night of the attack in Hogsmeade two Halloweens ago, he’d been distancing himself. “I’ve rebuffed a number of their requests. It’s not likely they’d be willing to go out of their way to do me a favor. Thank you for offering to check through your father’s things, though.”
“Of course.” She had never approved of Miles’ involvement with the Liberi. They were dirty, and their politics were dirty. Just because their veneer was cleaner than the terrifying Death Eater masks her father and his cronies had worn, didn’t mean they were any different. Pansy was glad to hear that Miles seemed to be pulling away from their ideals, but it was a dangerous game.
She set down her wine glass and leaned across the table then. “You should be keen how you go about rebuffing such people. You know I hate what you’ve gotten yourself into, but if you don’t at least play your part, then they’ll deal with you the same way they’ve used you to deal with the unwanted detritus.” Her voice was low and only carried to him. “You should have a care.”
She leaned back then and fingered her wine glass. “Are you a son of Slytherin or not? Play the game and get what you need out of them.”
He knew she was right, but he’d been trying so hard to ween the group from his life. It was partly do to his own conscience. He didn’t like the things it had come out the Liberi were involved in. A large part of the reason was also that he knew Reese didn’t like the ‘sticky darkness’ that she could see touching him. It made her uneasy and the thought of getting back into that world, particularly while Reese’s child was in his care... Miles didn’t like it and he knew Reese wouldn’t like it. But what good did it do him to free himself of the darkness for Reese if she was stuck somewhere that it surrounded her?
“I’ll make some inquiries,” he said at last. There were no easy answers in this situation, and the weight of it showed on his face. “I have to think about Kiss, though. I won’t tolerate those people near her.”
“Nor should you,” Pansy said before sipping her wine and then continuing moments later. “I have faith that you will be able to keep such things separate. And, if you should need, I would be happy to care for the little one while you do what needs doing.” Gods. She wouldn’t make such an offer to anyone else. She had little experience with children, and Gwen’s little heathen was enough to make any woman wish she was barren. Miles was her friend though. She had few friends, and Pansy would go to the ends of the earth for those few.
There were few things that could have lightened Miles mood just then, but hearing Pansy Parkinson offer to babysit appeared to be one of them. He couldn’t have stopped the laughter that burst forth, though he sobered quickly when Pansy’s gaze turned hard. With a half-smile, he raised his hands in a show of appeasement. “Thank you, Pansy. I appreciate the offer and I will keep it in mind.” Miles reached over and took her hand, pressing a kiss to the back of it. The smile still lingered, but his voice was sincere when he continued, “You’re a lovely, brilliant, surprising woman, and I count myself very lucky to call you a friend.”
“As you should,” Pansy sniffed. She was still put out at his laughter, but the words appeased her. For now.
SUMMARY: Miles tells Pansy about his worries concerning Reese. They reaffirm their friendship as only old friends can.