An Important Step

[Jeremy Thorne]

As the crowd began to surge towards the graduates, wanting to offer their congratulations, Jeremy turned to his girlfriend as he stood up. A huge smile was on the new graduate’s face, which reached all the way up to his blue eyes. He stared down at the blonde young woman who had come to mean so much to him in the past five months. “We did it, Alyss” he said, speaking above the shouts and loud conversations that had broken out everywhere. Jeremy looked around, spotting his mother and sister making their way towards him. He knew his father couldn’t be that much further behind. This would be the first time that they would have the opportunity to meet his girlfriend. He’d spoken about her to both of his parents, his father in particular, but every time they had suggested the pair apparate to the states for a quick visit, he had declined. Jeremy hadn’t been sure and still wasn’t sure he was ready to take that next step with Alyss. They had been dating for five months, five glorious months, but he wanted to take things slow. And, he wanted to avoid the often scathing judgment that came off his mother and sister. They could be as harsh as the Rumor Has It magazine in some ways.

Bending his head, Jeremy placed a kiss on his girlfriend’s cheek. He took the opportunity to whisper into her ear. ”My mother and sister are just over there” he warned her, a dry tone to his voice. He knew, from his Muggle Studies class, that meeting your significant other’s parents was a big step in a relationship. They were currently being blocked off by a large family that had decided to begin hugging right in front of them. He was grateful for the extra moment. Jeremy wasn't exactly eager for his mother or sister to meet Alyss, not because he was ashamed of her but because he was afraid of what they might say. He looked around quickly for his dad, knowing that if his dad was around, Alana would at least pretend to be polite and his mother would be mostly silent. That's how things typically had been since his parents had divorced anyway. Jeremy also looked around for another person, the one person he’d invited to his graduation aside from his family. He didn’t spot her though and turned his attention back to Alyss, pulling away so he could stare into her beautiful face as he waited for a reply.

 

[Sapphire Bookchild]

Sapphire was already a little uncomfortable here. There where other students there sure but there where also a lot of parents and a lot of families. It played upon her secret wish to maybe one day find her own family just to as why she had been left behind like she had been. She watched them interact, some happy to see their child all grown up and graduated some bickering over some nonsense as if determined to ruin everyone's day. That was what families where like though. Sapphire loved the family that she had right now but she couldn't get the splinter of her birth parents out of her mind just yet. She would need a little more time to either drop it or try and figure it out with what little information she had at the moment. In her mind she had "The Dance of the Headless Corpse" in her head both the song and an adventure that she was planning for the Overworld Chronicles as she looked around searching for her best friend. All flights of fancy where shaken out of her head when she saw him, his arm around his girlfriend. Sapphire knew that at that moment she would not be able to get through this even with her emotions still active so she did something that she hadn't done in for quite some time. She shut down. Everything that could possibly embarrass her and Jeremy was locked up in a box in her heart. Oh it had a price, once the shell she placed around herself was cracked the pain would be magnified but it would be in private where she could deal with it in her own way.

What walked up to Jeremy and gave him a friendly hug might as well have been called Saph-tron 5000. She had her sister Ruby's glide though not quite as bird like and a radiant smile but her eyes where dead. "Hey Jay you survived! You where brilliant up there really you where." She said brightly then turned to Alyss and gave her a friendly hug. "And you too. Kept your name directly out of RHI I see. Good job on that. A few of us where not quite so lucky." Sapphire joked around her smile reaming bright as ever. She looked around a bit. "I sware I saw your parents somewhere around but they probably got lost in the crowd like I did." She said brightly. Jeremy's parents though she was sure that the perfect Veela girl's blond parents where there too.

 

[Alyss Summers]

Alyss stood up on her tip-toes and gave Jeremy a quick peck on the cheek, a grin lighting up her face. 'We sure did!' She laughed. She couldn't believe it that she was here standing at her graduation with her boyfriend of five months, someone who had definitely changed her for the better. Her blue eyes darted around the place, trying to find her older friend Sienna, who she had only met recently, and her best friend, Koboshi. Since her father was killed in her first year, and her mother abandoned her, Alyss had no family to invite, so she invited two of her friends. Alyss had sent her mother a letter telling her that she was graduating, about Jeremy and about everything else that had been happening, but the letter had been returned unopened. She shook her head slightly, in an attempt to get her mother out of her head. She refused to let her get to her today of all days.

Alyss was surprised when Sapphire came up and after hugging Jeremy, hugged her as well, but the Slytherin girl returned the hug gently. Frowning slightly, she shook her head. 'Unfortunately I didn't,' She sighed, 'There was an article about me once, and I was mentioned several times briefly...' She wished she hadn't been mentioned in Rumor Has It, but she supposed that she couldn't complain too much. It had been what got her and Jeremy together. Neither of them had realised that the other felt the same, and who knew that RHI would be what brought them together?

Her smile widened as Jeremy leaned down, and gave her a kiss on the cheek, and whispered in her ear. 'Do you think they'll like me?' She asked worriedly. She didn't want to embarrass Jeremy in front of his family, and she was worried that they would hate her. What would happen if they disapproved of her because of her past that she tried so hard to keep quiet?

 

[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy stood close to Alyss in that way that couples who were comfortable with each other did. He was going to give her another kiss, but they were interrupted. Breaking away from Alyss, he hugged his guest, his best friend, Sapphire. He was glad she had come and was even more surprised when she hugged Alyss as well. A smile crossed his face as he nursed the belief that his friend and girlfriend could possibly be friends one day. He knew how Sapphire felt about him and he hadn't been able to spend much time with her this semester at all as his new relationship had taken all of his free time. As Sapphire picked up a conversation with Alyss, Jeremy looked around for his parents again. He spotted his dad chatting with another parent, a colleague apparently. Who knew?

"Thanks...it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be" he grinned stupidly. His blue eyes looked back to Sapphire, something seemed to be off about her. She looked happy enough, but it was almost too happy as if she was faking. He furrowed his brow but didn't say anything. "My dad's over there talking to someone. I lost track or my mom and Alanna though" he stated, taking another look around until Alyss distracted him. He smiled down at her. "I'm sure they will" he stated. I hope so anyway, he thought to himself just before he was engulfed in a hug from the side. A big kiss followed. "Moooom" he said in an embarrassed tone. He didn't know what had come over her. She was never this way. As she stepped back, Jeremy could look around once again and he caught his sister's smirk over his mother's shoulder. She was giving both Sapphire and Alyss the once over, and Jeremy eyed her giving her a silent warning. "Mom. Alanna. This is my girlfriend, Alyss" he smiled, putting his arm around her shoulder, "and this is Sapphire. My friend." His father had joined them by then so he heard the tale end of the introductions. The older Thorne man nodded his head in acknowledgment, holding his hand out to his son as he offered his congratulations. He was the first to speak as well. "It's nice to meet you, Alyss. I've heard a lot about you, dear. You too, Sapphire." Jeremy gave a sideways glance to Alyss to see how she was holding up. His mother and Alanna both smiled faintly as they quietly looked first at the tattooed girl and then at the blonde.

 

[Georgiana Night-Carter]

Georgiana made her way through the crowd of people. It was almost a shame she hadn't inherited any of the height the rest of her family had been given. The added height would give her an extra edge in looking for a certain person she knew would be among the crowd. Georgiana knew she did not have a good relationship with the person she was looking for, the Head Boy. She was on better terms with the Head Girl who was from her own House and had been on the same Quidditch team in previous years. Briar was a good person who happened upon some bad times, just like Georgiana herself. As she stood in the crowd her eyes scanning the girl thought back to how she had met the Head Boy. Back then he was no Head Boy, not even a Prefect yet. It was during the dance or party whichever it had been, for Halloween. Jeremy had been a third year, Georgiana herself just in her first year. They were introduced by a mutual person, a person now that Georgiana wished she could forget. She was sure that Jeremy Thorne had forgotten this person himself for the most part, unless she was around. He had seemed like a nice sort of person until the next time they crossed paths.

Georgiana had learned during that second meeting to never catch a ball a boy was throwing up against a wall. It was the beginning a long and anger filled relationship for them. A painful one for Georgiana. During that fateful conversation in the Student Lounge she already felt hatred coming towards her from the boy. Jealousy had come from both of them throughout the years of Logan Stone still being at the school. Once he left, Georgiana did not have another reason to talk to Jeremy, yet they had run into each other once. But nothing much came from that. Earlier this semester, Georgiana had run into him at the Rosebush it seemed as though things were still heated between them. Now it seemed more her fault, after Logan left she hadn't many friends to speak with and school wasn’t much fun for her. The girl hadn't even talked much to her brother; she kept up Quidditch but that too got hard to concentrate on. Georgiana went home during their last break and stayed with her Grandmother who recognized the signs of Depression running through her Granddaughter. Everything after her Grandmother standing against her became easier and she felt like she was finally letting go of Logan and her heartache. Returning back to the girl she had been growing up Georgie knew she needed to say a few things to the Head Boy before he left.

Finally seeing the Head Boy she made her way over surprised to catch him giving a girl a kiss on the cheek and holding her close. She wasn’t very surprised that the girl was Slytherin at all, after all the times her and Jeremy shared she wouldn't be surprised if he never started a relationship with any Gryffindor, besides friends. He seemed to be surrounded by family so she stayed a ways back letting others pass in front of her on their way to other Graduates. Once she saw an opportunity she made her way up to the older boy. "Thorne," she said not in a short manner but yet not in an overly friendly manner either. Georgiana knew she had a lot to say to him, but time was limited for the time they could stay in the Hall and she did want to say Congratulations to Briar as well. "I was wondering if it was alright to speak with you for a short moment," the girl said looking down towards his shoes rather than his face. If any anger or emotion that clearly meant he did not want her to be there, she’d rather not see it till after she said everything she wanted too.