Closed Big Decisions

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace frowned over the letter she had just received from her father. The letter was sternly worded as usual, and the request he had for her wasn't as much a question as a statement. It was clear that he assumed she would simply say yes without question, but she wasn't on her own and had someone else to consult too. It frustrated her that her dad assumed his plans would just be possible, but she also knew that she probably couldn't say no. She sighed, heading over to the living room where Dominik was. "Hey, can we talk?" She asked him, holding up her letter as explanation. "My dad just wrote me. He has a request." She said, her mouth twisting a bit in frustration as she scanned the letter again.

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik was sitting in the living room, busy finishing up a report he had been working on in the office earlier that day. Running a hand through his hair whilst he was scribbling away on the paper, he looked up as Grace entered the living room. He smiled and nodded his head, squinting his eyes a little to see what was written on the letter. He really needed a pair of glasses. He couldn't help himself from groaning when Grace told him that her father had a request. ''Is he asking you to dump me again for someone more successful?'' Dominik asked, half-jokingly. It had been fun to hear at first, as he thought that she had been pulling his leg when she told him that her father would definitely not approve of him, but as time went on it was getting more and more annoying. ''I can show him my payslip if he wants, I'm making almost as much as you now.''

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace sighed and dropped onto the couch, stretching one leg in front of her as she read through the letter again. She shook her head. "Nothing so direct. Honestly, he's been pretty tame since you started working at the Ministry, I think he still hopes I'll follow you there." She told him with a sigh. "No... he's asking us for a favor." She lowered the letter and folded it. "You know I have a little sister, right? She's ten... I haven't seen her much over the past years." She admitted. Grace and Violette had never been that close, because their difference in age meant that Grace had already been at beauxbatons while her sister was growing up. "My dad wants her to go to Hogwarts here, make use of... 'family connections'." She made quotation marks around the words with her fingers. "He now wants her to live with us for a few months before school starts, and during the shorter breaks. So she can settle here, make connections here..." She frowned. "He's really hoping that being near our aunt will help her, I suppose." She mused. "What do you think?"

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik followed Grace to the couch and dropped down beside her, positioning himself so that he was facing her instead and listened to what she had to say. He chuckled at her response to his joke, wondering if her father would ever give up on her taking a job at the ministry. He took a deep breath, studying her with his brown eyes while he thought about it. He could see why she wanted to talk to him about it, it was an unusual request which required both of them to agree on it. She had been kind enough to let his brother stay here when things weren't going well at their home, what kind of boyfriend would he be if he didn't let her sister stay with them when she - well her father asked for it this time around. He thought that it would good for her and her sister to be reunited again, surely she would miss her little sister just as much as he missed his younger brothers. He also hoped that he could gain some brownie points by saying yes since he actually did want Grace's father to like him after five years of having been in a relationship with his daughter. ''I am fine with it as long as you are,'' Dominik said after a moment, smiling at her. ''We would have to clear out the other room again but that's done in a matter of seconds, really,'' he added to it. ''I could do it tonight if your father wants her to come over now?''

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace wasn't really sure what her own feelings on the issue were yet, but it was easier to focus on Dominik first. If he had concerns, which would be valid, Grace could perhaps more easily say no to her father. But she shouldn't have underestimated how supportive Dominik was. Grace nodded slowly as he said he was fine with it, and even started making plans already. She pushed some of her hair behind her ear, forced to acknowledge that any trepidation about this idea was her own. "I don't know. I... I would like to see her." She said hesitantly. "But I don't know if I agree with my dad putting her in Hogwarts just because of our family. There's nothing wrong with Beauxbatons." She paused. "But that decision isn't going to change. It might be good for her to be away from him for a bit too..." She said, sighing softly. She smiled a bit as Dominik said he could do it tonight. "It's not for such a short notice. I think he expected more resistance, to be honest." She told him. "It's not until May, maybe even June. Just to get her settled here before Hogwarts." She bit her lip, thinking. "I'm not very close to her. I don't really know anything about her, honestly." She admitted quietly. "What if she hates it here?"

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik bit on the inside of his cheek while she spoke again, thinking that it should at least be her sister choice on whether or not she wanted to go to Hogwarts or Beauxbatons regardless of what their father thought of it. ''Why don't we have her come over for a day or two and ask her what she wants? If she wants to go to Hogwarts, well, then she can stay with us. And if she wants to go to Beauxbatons, which, let's be honest, who wouldn't, she could still come here and make such connections over the holidays?'' he told her, throwing out the first suggestion that came to mind. ''I bet she thinks that you are the most wonderful person and that you two will get along in no time, you are her sister after all,'' he reassured Grace. ''And if you are really concerned about her not liking it here, I could always ask my Dad if it's OK that Joe stays here too for a couple of days? They should be of similar age, I think? So she would at least have someone to hang out with,'' Dominik added. It would be a bit crowded with four people but if it meant that everyone's wishes would be met, he didn't see the problem of it.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace smiled a little sadly. "She's going to Hogwarts, Dominik." She said, not sure if he understood. "My father will decide for her, and she'll say yes. Parents can pick the school their kids go to." Grace shrugged. "It's a good school, it will be good for her to meet her cousins. Alice will take care of her at Hogwarts, as will I." She said a little hesitantly. "But that would be nice to have her here regardless. It's a good idea." She said. "Maybe it'll be good for her to get used to things here." She blushed a little as Dominik said he bet that she probably thought she was the most wonderful person. "I... don't know about that." She said hesitantly. "We haven't talked much lately. Really." She said, feeling a little self conscious about it now. But Violette was halfway across the world, and Grace hadn't been back to France much over the past years. Violette had been born right around the time Grace had left for Beauxbatons, which meant she had never spent that much time with her sister. "But maybe her hanging out with Joe would be nice. She's very shy, it might be nice for her to get to know someone." She said thoughtfully. "Thanks for being so open in all this." She added.

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik let out a soft sigh, finding himself become a little annoyed the more she talked about it. If she knew that her father was only sending Violette to Hogwarts for the connections she might make there then why wasn't she against it? Shouldn't education come first in this situation? ''And who is your father thinking she might make connections with? Your aunt through Alice?'' he asked bluntly, switching to English. ''I don't think he cares much about which school she'll go to as long as she makes friends there who could prove useful in the future. Which is wrong, by the way,'' he added. He wasn't against having her sister come over and stay with them during the breaks, on the contrary, he thought that it would be a wonderful idea, he just didn't like Grace's father making the decisions for Violette. He studied her for a moment with his brown eyes, grinning slightly as she blushed. ''But if you think that it would be the best school for your sister then I will support you in that decision.'' She was an actual teacher at the school after all, she would know better than any of them. ''That's why I think we should invite her over sooner, make sure she gets to know you a little better before going to Hogwarts. I'm sure that would make things easier for both of you.'' He nodded when she told him that her sister hanging out with Joe might be a good thing and made a mental note to remind himself to write to his parents about it the following day. Dominik smiled at Grace. ''You would have done the same for me,'' he answered, moving over to give her a peck on the cheek.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace shrugged and looked away at Dominik's words. "I don't know. He just wants to give her an advantage." She said, not sure why she was defending him. "I know it's wrong. But I'm not her parent, I can't choose her school for her. At least at Hogwarts I can look out for her." She said, frowning a little. "It's not my decision. If we don't let her stay here he'll still send her to school there." She said with a sigh. She nodded in agreement with Dominik's idea, though the thought made her strangely nervous. What if Violette... just didn't like her? What if they would never become close? It was easy to blame distance and age difference when she was in France, but if she was here, maybe it would just be that Grace didn't know how to be a big sister. She leaned in to Dominik a little and nodded. "I know, but still... thank you."

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik knew that there wasn't much she could do about it, or he for that matter. There just wasn't any point in arguing with her father when his mind was set on something. Which why arguing with her about it wasn't exactly fair either. He smiled at her as she thanked him, kissing her on her lips before eventually pulling back again. ''Ok, how about you write back to your father and I'll cook us some dinner? I think it's my turn to do so anyway,'' he told Grace. One of the things he liked about working in New Zealand was how often they got to see each other, especially now that they were also living together. While he had really enjoyed his work as a Dragonologist in Romania, applying for an office job at the Ministry to be closer to her was perhaps the best thing he'd done in a while. Well, that and working together with the Department of International Magical Cooperation to keep the connections between the New Zealand Ministry of Magic and the Romanian one from crumbling, since they had one of the largest dragon reserves in the world - it'd be good to keep track of the different species of dragons that were being bred there, especially since some of those would also be transferred to New Zealand's dragon reserve.