t h e r e s e ❥ (alongday) wrote in valesco,
@ 2010-11-07 22:36:00

Entry tags:

alice longbottom, danielle rookwood, donovan rookwood, edward pennifold, frank longbottom, graciela pennifold, group, mackenzie goldstein, sebastian goldstein

OPEN TO EVERYONE! MINISTRY CELEBRATION!
It was very hard to keep a smile on her face when only a week ago two of her best friends had been murdered, one was arrested for being a killer and death eater, and a fourth was blown to pieces. Alice had spent the last seven days in a giant haze, and she herself wasn't exactly sure how she'd even gotten herself dressed for this Ministry celebration.

She was staring quite hard at the blown up poster of the Potters from their wedding day. The walls were adorned with pictures of James, Lily, and Harry, along with other pictures of the men and women who have given their lives for the war effort. Alice wasn't sure whether this was something she was touched or disgusted by. She loved seeing the smiling faces of her friends and the others---some were co-workers, people she'd had lunch in the ministry cafeteria with, but...the Ministry hadn't done much outside of the auror squad to stop the war, and it was really some freak accident by Harry Potter that had ended it...so to see how the wizarding community was so undoubtedly behind their ministry and the the minister right now was a bit disturbing...

Alice let out a breath and looked for her husband. It had taken much effort to get Frank out here (that part, she did remember quite clearly), and she did understand his sentiments. Not showing up, however, would create even more stress. The Longbottoms were quite publicly good friends of the Potters, and the ministry had wasted no time in making that connection. Alice was finding quotes in the Prophet that she'd supposedly said about Lily and their school days which weren't true at all (even if they were nothing but glowing reviews). Maybe she and Frank could leave now that they've made an appearance, and Alice headed toward the buffet table; it was her first guest as to where to find her husband.

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alongday
2010-11-09 01:40 am UTC (link)

Alice's smile was the first real one she'd felt slide on her face all week, and she pushed forward to kiss Frank on the cheek, "Thank you."

She was proud of Frank, considering the circumstances. He and Alice had always been somewhat opposite with their tactics in life, especially when it came to being an auror, so it was hard for her to understand sometimes why he did what he did or reacted the way he did. With the Potters, however, and then with Sirius, Alice had been so ready to let Frank unleash his rage against their former friend. It had been so hard to put her hands up (and threaten to raise her wand) and stop him from going mad against Sirius Black, but she had to. She didn't want to risk having Frank lose any sense of humanity, and she knew it had been hard for him to keep that sanity since his time in Paris, so she'd really---

---she'd really been trying to keep her husband from going crazy, no matter how much he thought she was working against him.

"I don't think there will be any more speeches," she said softly, moving to sidle up against Frank. Alice pressed her nose to his cheek and let out a breath, her arm moving around him. In these public appearances, Alice always felt better when she was right by his side. "I think we can escape."

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__frankish
2010-11-09 03:55 am UTC (link)

Frank's brow rose with intrigue, genuinely surprised that Alice was suggesting an exit so young in the night. Though, he supposed he should know better. Alice always knew what an appropriate action would be and what wasn't, while he just blundered around doing whatever the hell he wanted most of the time. He should listen to her much more often, and control his temper-- but sometimes it was just too hard to cool down the burning rage that would course through his body.

"Finally," he spoke as his hand reached for her, fingers locking with hers. Frank held his gaze low to match Alice's, dipping his chin to look down at their feet. Why did things always have to get so fucked up? Why was it so difficult to just-- just be like this? Calm, quiet and normal. He enjoyed this kind of moments he and Alice had, especially when it came to being in public. Actually, it was the only kind of display of affection he approved of. Sometimes it was necessary to stop and get themselves on the same page.

"I would like that. Being here doesn't feel right," Frank said in a low tone, feeling the rising anger from earlier beginning to die down for the time being. Maybe they could go home and have one night of not remembering all that had happened in the past two weeks. Wouldn't that be an absolute threat?

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alongday
2010-11-11 01:59 am UTC (link)

There was a twitch in Frank's face that meant his blood was beginning to boil, so Alice kissed him quickly before squeezing his hand and pulling him through the crowd. Yes, they most definitely needed to get out of there, and if anyone asked she could say that Neville was causing her mother quite the fuss. Donna Goodsmith was much more willing to let the little boy run around and cause a fuss, so it was definitely something that could be happening at that very moment.

Alice smiled at the thought of Neville covered in spaghetti sauce, racing after her parents' cat. He was so big already! Her baby boy could walk, run, pull off his socks (Neville hated socks, for some reason!), and now that the war was over they could do so much more together. Their boy had been stuck in the house for so long, except when he was being watched by their parents or Emmeline, or the random trips to Order members. It was a good thing that their house was so big or else Neville would probably go crazy being inside all day, but now it was safe. Mostly. It was mostly safe.

At the very least, Voldemort was gone. They had been able to thwart his efforts against the family, his attacks having put their lives on pause. Now, they could actually look toward the future. Frank could---relax. He deserved to relax. Neville could expand his horizons, and she...Alice smiled.

"Frank," she mused out loud as he pushed open the door to get out of the main ballroom. It was a million times quieter out here, and it felt like they'd entered a different world. Alice trailed behind slightly, letting her husband take the lead. "What would you think about me staying home with Neville, for a bit? And for...other things?"

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__frankish
2010-11-23 03:35 am UTC (link)

Much better. Frank felt himself significantly relax once they left the crowed room and walked into the larger foyer area. All that chattering and pleasing and sucking up-- it had become harder and harder for him to deal with. There was only so much fakeness he could take after having to deal with reality for so long.

"Other things?" he repeated, not understanding at first. Frank turned to Alice behind him, hoping for a cue from her face. Staying home? As in... not going into work everyday. And doing other things that were much less serious than they had been dealing with for the past three years. Well--- who wouldn't want that? And if he could give that to Alice, which he could, then he would.

Nodding his head slowly, Frank began to smile. His feet stopped, giving Alice enough time to move closer to him, "I think," he started slowly, wrapping his arms around her and dipping his chin low while doing so. "If you want to, then it's a very good idea."

Actually, the more he thought about it, the more he wished he had realized this earlier. The idea of taking a break from being an auror had never occurred to him before. But now... would be a good time? Life was beginning to become much different now--- Frank couldn't quite bring himself to think that meant he could just drop being an auror though. It had been apart of him for so long, something he had latched onto as a defining subject of who he was... so maybe he would just take next week off. Start small and ease into it.

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alongday
2010-11-25 12:32 am UTC (link)

Alice hummed happily at his agreement. She would stay home. She'd be a stay-at-home mum with Neville, at least for a little bit. Mothers in the ministry did it all the time, and she had only taken the minimum amount of maternity leave allowed, so it was definitely the right decision to make. She'd missed out on a lot of valuable Neville time that she'd never get back, so Alice was going to do her best to make up for it.

And maybe make something else along the way.

Her arms slunk around Frank's shoulders and she pulled closer. If he had agreed with her staying home for a bit, he'd agree to her next venture too, right? They finally had less on their plates, Neville was running around as he hurtled toward his terrible twos, it was...good timing, on their part, Alice believed. Everyone else seemed to be doing it, too, so why not them? For once, they could have what everyone else had, and they'd be just as happy as the rest of the world.

She kissed him before she spoke, for good measure, "I want to have another baby," Alice bit her lip before quickly kissing Frank again, her inner courage that made her bring up the subject disappearing with concern. Would he really agree?

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__frankish
2010-12-03 02:53 am UTC (link)

Frank stopped for a moment, letting Alice's words sink in. She wanted another baby? They had always talked about having a large family, but that had been during school in his four-poster bed late at night when they couldn't sleep. His thoughts did seldom change, though so... he was definitely not against the idea. Just-- she definitely meant soon. And hell, he had half a mind to start trying right herein spite of the bloody Ministry. But they were at an event for James and Lily....

James would've approved, Frank had no doubt about that, it was just-- was it wrong to feel insensitive for wanting to continue on? Without them. Acknowledging that they were moving on already? It sounded stupid the more he thought about it, because no one would want other to live like that, and Frank was proud Alice was so eager to start the rest of their lives, he just felt--- sad. Frank felt sad he no longer had James there to be his mirror life. And angry, so angry.

Frank took in a breath, feeling like he was pausing longer than he actually was. He wanted another baby, he did. What Frank wouldn't give for a girl, a little sister for Neville. So he should listen to Alice, trust her judgement that everything was going to be fine from now on, believe they had a chance at a normal life.

"I really want a girl this time," Frank spoke in a low tone, his lips pressing together to form a very small smile. He closed his eyes for a second, then pressed his forehead against Alice's after he spoke.

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