So Much To Do

A

Antoinette Greenwood

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OOC First Name
Camilla!
Wand
Chestnut Wand with Dragon Heartstring 9 1/4"
Placing her hands on her hips, Antoinette straightened herself out and surveyed her handiwork. Packing was a horrible task. Even with magic, it was still frustrating - though not as much as it could have been. "Well, that's most of the clothes," she muttered to herself, looking at the neatly folded piles of clothing. "Pity hardly any of it's maternity wear." At least she could get away with her normal clothes for just a little while longer. Though she was quite clearly starting to show. She was almost at four months now, and it was only going to get worse from here.

Arching her back, Antoinette stretched herself out before slumping down on to the bed, her mind a jumble of thoughts. First there was the move to New Zealand they were currently in the middle of - her father had helped her find a small, yet beautiful and comfortable home for the three (soon to be four) of them, then there was the wedding, planned for December. That was quite probably the more stressful. Even though they didn't want a very big affair, Antoinette still found that trying to make it perfect was excruciatingly stressful. Add to that the pressures of pregnancy, and the consideration that there'd be a newborn baby for them to look after in about 5 months time...Antoinette sighed. Standing up again, she surveyed her work once more, making sure there was nothing she had forgotten.
 
James had been outside, attempting to pack the rock with 'Home of the Daltons' on it. He had a case open nearby.
He heaved the stone into the case but became frustrated when he couldn't close the case.
"Stupid thing!" James shouted before he stomped inside the shack, to the bed he and Antoinette shared.
James sad down on it heavily. He wasn't really sulking because of the rock. No, James was sulking because they were moving house. To New Zealand, of all places. Why did they have to go there?
James mind was firing bad memories at him. Memories of the people he had met, what had happened. What if he met them again?
But then he felt comforted slightly. Why would they want to see him again? There would be no reason to purposely meet and an accidental meeting could easily be excused. James could easily say "This is an old friend of mine." Antoinette wouldn't have to know how many women he had been unfaithful with. Not without good reason.
 
Pip was fast becoming anxious with everyone else's worries. James had been storming around the house most of the morning, swearing and attempting to pack. Antoinette, he could see, was fairing no better in her constant fretting. Pippin fussed over them both, packing what he could and zooming around the house at top speed to make everything easier. Occasionally he found that his eagerness to help often got in the way, namely the time where in his hurry he ran over James' toe. Pip was now lurking in the corner of his room silently and hoping that someone would call him out to help. No one did. Luckily for him, a shout broke through his melancholy wishes and brought his James' voice, who appeared to be in a dire situation. By the time he arrived, James had already left in a huff and Pippin was left staring at an empty suitcase and a rather over sized rock with the Dalton name on it.
"Oh, James." sighed Pip to himself, removing his wand. Leaning down, he tapped the rock firmly with the tip and said "Reducio," watching it shrink down to a more manageable size. "James, Sir?" Pippin called out quietly, finding himself quite alone in the cold. He could wait just a few more minutes out there; after all, he couldn't lift the rock himself. He thought about his own packing and couldn't help the slight thrill of misery that ran through him. Three shirts, two pairs of pants, his wand and an old charms books. The usual underwear and socks, and only one pair of shoes. That was all he owned in the world at the moment, and he wished so much that Antoinette too had something better to wear now that the baby was growing bigger. His breath misted out in front of his and he rubbed his hands through the fingerless gloves. "Sir! James!" Pip tried again.
 
Antoinette breathed a heavy sigh. James had not taken her plan to move to New Zealand very well. But as much as the home they had was lovely, it simply wasn't properly equipped for four people. They needed a proper house, near the town so they could easily access anything they wanted. And in New Zealand, because now Antoinette was starting a family of her own, she wanted to be somewhat close to the family she already had, because she liked New Zealand, and because she was hoping to eventually get Pippin in to Hogwarts New Zealand. If everything went according to plan.

Folding her arms, Antoinette stood opposite James, a mixture of exasperation and empathy evident on her face. James was hard to deal with sometimes, but she loved him to death, even if he drove her nuts. She thought he was being selfish, but then again, she did understand where he was coming from...sort of. "James?" she began, tentatively. "I know you don't want to do this...but please? For me?"

When all else failed, there was always emotional manipulation.
 
James looked up at Antoinette and sighed. "Fine.." He grumbled. He wasn't pleased with the situation but he love Antoinette.
There was a sudden call from Pippin and James rolled his eyes. "Back in a moment." He muttered, pecking Antoinette's lips before disappearing outside.
He found Pippin with the stone. "What are you doing?" James asked, brows furrowed.
Pippin was nice. He liked Pippin but he could never be James' own son and that made things awkward. The fact also that Pippin called James 'sir' didn't help in the slightest. But, he was a bit like a son to he and Antoinette. And that was why he planned to ask him two vital questions- one now, one later.
 
James didn't look too pleased at being called out into the cold, or perhaps he just wasn't pleased in general. He hadn't been having a good day, Pippin could tell. "Well, er ... you seemed to be having a bit of trouble with the rock, see, so I shrunk it down for you." he explained meekly. He didn't want to imply that James couldn't have done it himself, only that he was trying to help in whatever ways possible. "So ... er..." Pippin paused. "Wingardium Leviosa?" he suggested to the rock, wand held at the ready. Up the rock went and down again directly into the suitcase stuffed with newspaper for passing, and up once more as the suitcase came flying towards him. "Blast-" said Pippin, just as the heavy case barreled into his chest, knocking the wind out of him. Letting out a long breath with an eyebrow twitching in pain, Pip held up the case. "Er. There you are, sir." What are you, a maid servant? he thought scathingly at himself. Call him James.

"I'm sorry I can't help more, James ... Sir." said Pipping, swallowing. Why was it that even now, he still felt that someone was going to hit him for speaking or not completing a task to perfection? Sometimes someone would walk too fast in his general direction as he would flinch, or even if they made a sudden movement. Antoinette said that he didn't have to do anything, but he didn't tell her how hard his was practicing his magic in the middle of night so as to help them better. Pippin owed them everything, and it was times such as these that they needed his help most of all.
 
James watched as Pippin struggled but managed complete the 'task'.
He walked to Pippin, an odd expression on his face, and crouched down beside him. "Pippin," James said, looking up at the boy's young face, "You don't need to call me sir." James actually sounded compassionate. Perhaps the most he had in years.
He began to feel uncomfortable with sounding so.. kind and switched to a colder tone, standing up.
"You try your best, Pippin. That you do. That's why you're going to be my best man at the wedding." James had turned away but now his head twitched to look back at the boy. He was asking Pippin but the tone wasn't quite right and he hadn't phrased it right, however, he didn't want rejection and so he had made it a difficult thing for Pippin to back out of without angering James.

James was growing up. Slowly, yes, but his maturity was changing.
 
Antoinette twirled a strand of long, blonde hair absently around her finger. She hoped she wasn't doing anything wrong by moving. She just felt that moving to New Zealand would be better for all of them. Pippin, and later on, the baby, could hopefully go to Hogwarts New Zealand (she'd attended Hogwarts Scotland herself for a time, and while Beauxbatons had proven to be the best for her, she knew that for Pippin, a Hogwarts would be much better, and same for her baby, most likely).

Rubbing her stomach (it was an action she did involuntarily now), Antoinette moved outside, to see what James and Pippin were up to. She broke in to a sweet smile when she saw the two of them, moving to Pippin and putting her arms around him gently. Antoinette was far too emotional these days. She blamed the baby, messing with her hormones and the like. "You alright, sweetie?" she asked, kindly, before straightening up and moving to James. "Hey. It's okay. Come inside, I'll get you a drink." Antoinette turned to Pippin once more, with a smile. "I'll have a little chat to James, and I'll make you something nice, alright? You can come back inside in a moment," she said before leading James back inside.

((lol laaame but whatever))
 
Pippin opened his mouth slightly at the soft tone in James' voice. He was soon reassured when his voice grew a little sterner, but he was certainly not prepared for what came out of it. It was small praise, to be sure, but it filled his heart nonetheless with joy and a strange longing to do even better, just to make James proud of him. Perhaps he already had, if James then asking him to be best man at his wedding was any indication. His mouth dropped open fully then, the picture of utter shock. Pippin? Best man? Representing the groom's closest friend? Pip jumped when he felt arms around him, but it was only Antoinette who had come to bring James inside. Pippin didn't mind at all; his head was still in a whirl and he had no time to thank James or even give him his answer. He was flabbergasted.

Pip glanced down at the cold dirt dirt and allowed himself one, tiny, hopeful smile. He was prouder than he had ever been in his entire life and ever so grateful, too. But he wouldn't cry or fall unconscious as the weaker Pippin may have. He smiled a little wider, nodded to Antoinette and moved off up the pathway a little. The little shack was out of sight by the time he rounded the corner and stopped at the small makeshift gate, but Pip didn't mind at all. He was nearing fifteen, after all. He knew what they were really doing. Even so, he blushed. He shook his head and stared out across the moor where long grasses grew and the shack was hidden from the road. Soon this place would only be a memory, and a good one at that.
 
With the Tri-Wizard Tournament going on at Beauxbatons, Christina found people noticed her even less than usual.
Most people may have found this upsetting but Christina thought it brilliant- She could finally explore the forest without fear of being caught by a Professor.
Christina skipped along cheerfully, her problems of the past far behind her.
She'd never really made friends at Beauxbatons. She was always too quiet or off on an adventure whether it was physical or in a book.
And as she reached the depths of the forest, Christina was surprised to have not come across any magical wildlife. But then..
She froze still at the sound of something moving. What was it? Dare she go closer? Yes. Of course. This was Christina and she loved to risk all.

She could see something up ahead through the trees. The more she walked, the less dense the trees until she found herself in front of a gate and face to face with...
A boy.
Christina stared at him for a moment, having been just about to open the gate. She had paused but suddenly, with lightning fast reactions, she drew her wand and pointed it at him.
"Qui êtes-vous?" She demanded in her french tongue. She waited for a moment without an answer before adding "Parler!"
 
Midday had begun to turn into the afternoon when Pippin was disturbed by a crackling of branches. He rolled back slightly away from the gate and the leaves crunched beneath the wheels of his chair as he did so. Being nervous in temperament, he was instantly alert and scanning the surrounding woodland for signs of an approaching animal. He hated being almost immobile while sitting in his wheelchair like this. If it was a werewolf or a centaur, he was well and truly screwed. Pippin eyed an approaching shadow with apprehension until there emerged a girl, only a bit younger than he was. "Gosh," sighed Pip. "You scared m-". "Qui êtes-vous?" he flinched. Perhaps meeting another human being wasn't quite as preferable. The girl seemed to be quite agitated and had her wand trained on him. "Parler!" Pippin physically recoiled. Oh, things would be so much worse if she only spoke French. Hopefully one word of English might help them reach an understanding before he lost an eye.

Unfortunately his own wand was already out at pointed at her in return. He wasn't going to let himself be stunned (or worse) without some form of defense. Even if he could only turn her nose into a flower or suchlike. If closely examined, his wand hand was shaking and it was obvious that Pippin was not in the least bit agitated. Either way, he was determined to put up a fight if worst came to worst. "Ah..." he began, cheeks colouring. "Sorry to have interrupted your walk. Shall I ... move out of the way?" Oh, why didn't Antoinette teach me more French? Pippin lamented inwardly.
 
Christina lowered her wand a little but not very much. She raised an eyebrow at him. It was a pity she couldn't speak English.. But she could understand it. "Tu ne vas pas me faire mal?" She asked, her voice now calmer and less threatening.
She had been startled but the boy didn't seem such a threat.. He was in a wheelchair so he couldn't chase her easily.
Christina lowered her wand completely. "Mon nom est Christina Le Fèvre" She said, pulling the gate open, walking to the boy and offering a hand. Well, handshakes seemed to be what other cultures did upon greeting and so Christina tried this. She was still nervous and shaking a little. The boy was of English heritage, she knew that much. Did he speak French? She hoped so. It would make interacting a lot easier.
 
Pippin breathed out after a moment. The girl had put down her wand and it appeared that she had only been startled. He stuffed his own wand away immediately and lifted his hand to hers in a 'I'm-grateful-for-you-not-hexing-my-skin-off' fashion. He was as nervous with the contact as she was but generally pleased to find the girl friendly. Ach. More French, thought Pippin, furrowing his brow in worry. How were they ever to communicate properly if he knew just as much French as the snail that was crossing their path did? However, he distinctly heard the word 'Christina' in the last sentence, which could only be a name. Her name. "I'm Pippin," he introduced himself accordingly and taking her hand gently in his own. Damn, I hope that's what she said. Pippin bit his lip.

Her hand against his was warm and slightly smaller, which he was pleased to find. It was trembling a little like his was and his nerves calmed instantly in order to calm hers. Pippin's touch was soft and brief and he released her hand after a moment. It took him a long moment to realise that nothing had been said but their names, and he tried to think of all the French that he knew. "Ah ... bon jour!" he said, delighted at being able to greet her. Then what? "Well, er. Déjà vu. Café? Parfait!" suggested Pippin, going pinker than ever and starting to giggle. "Ahem. Oh! Excusez moi," he said excitedly, pleased to be able to say something of relevance to the situation. "Non français," Pip shrugged apologetically. How embarrassing.
 
Christina smiled upon hearing the boy- Pippin's name.
She began to giggle at the boys next words, the back of her petit hand raising to her mouth to hold in further giggling.
Christina was a small girl- Alright, she was average height but she was quite thin with it. She didn't eat much. She just read books and played about the castle.
"J'ai remarqué," Christina said, smiling. "Que fais-tu ici?" She asked, but upon remembering his skill in French, she began to make gestures:
First she drew an imaginary question mark in the air with her finger, then she pointed to Pippin, and then she gestured about her.
She racked her brain for any English she may know. But none came to mind. Christina gave a small sigh. Did he understand her?
 
Yes, Pippin was embarrassed, but he didn't feel ashamed at his lack of knowledge when Christina giggled too. After all, they were in exactly the same boat as each other. One word could mean as much as a pig grunting for all either of them knew. At least there were common French phrases that he could make use of. Pippin doubted very much that they did the same in English - even so, he could have been wrong. He began to grow nervous again as she spoke, trying quite hard to ask him something and seeming exasperated. He knew how she felt and figured that in a moment he'd be in the same predicament. Pippin concentrated, scrunching up his nose slightly as he tried to figure out what she wanted. She pointed to him, then someplace around her. Him. Around her. Here? Ah. What was he doing here? By the twig or two still threaded into her hair Pip figured that she must have been exploring the woodland and had not expected to find anyone there.

"Ah ..." This was the tricky bit. "Oh!". Going with an idea, Pippin placed his two hands together and pointed them to the sky. A roof. He mimed sleeping and eating, then he lifted his hand and indicated down the road. His home. Just as Pippin looked, there rose a small column of smoke from the chimney of the shack though the house was not in view yet. He smiled and looked to Christina. "Oh, er." Pointing to his eyes, to her and then back down the road, Pippin asked "Would you like to see?". Never mind that he was asking a strange French-speaking girl down the lane to his home where he was sure his adoptive parents were doing questionable things.
 
Christina was glad that Pippin seemed to have understood her but.. Now she had to try and understand him.. arrow? Pointing? House? Yes. House. She watched his other mimes. Was he saying he lived nearby, then? Yes. Surely. And then she could see smoke coming from somewhere. She watched his next mime and Christina smiled shyly, nodding in agreement.
She had just agreed to go to a boy's house. The house of a boy she had just met.
All of Christina's instincts told her to relax, that Pippin was a good person, yet her common sense told her that it was stupid to follow a stranger without a trusted adult being there.. But she still agreed and she followed him.
It didn't take too long to get to the shack. Christina could here people inside moving about and then..

".. Oh yeah? Catch me then!" A man shouted this as the door of the shack swung open. He was looking back over his shoulder at someone and holding a case in his arms. A suitcase. What on earth was going on? This man looked old enough not to play games but.. He seemed a little.. childish about something.

James had not liked the idea of moving initially and he still didn't like it now. That was why he had taken Antoinette's case and made a run for the door. He had decided he didn't want to go but there was no doubt in his mind that Antoinette could convince him. She would convince him. That was her skill.
 
"James Dalton!" a voice practically screeched, as the eighteen year old part-Veela girl appeared at the door of the shack, closing her eyes and concentrating. Sometimes she wished she had more Veela blood. Sure, it would be terrible when she was angry, but it was the skills in captivation that she needed. "You get your sorry arse back here right now!" Oh, she could kill him!

Well, that was a blatant lie. She could never hurt James in any way, he meant so much to her, but...why was he being so childish? Sure, the shack was nice and all, but it wasn't ideally where Antoinette wanted to live. She, rather hypocritically, saw James as being extremely selfish, not thinking about others at all. Of course, Antoinette was mostly thinking of herself, though she did insist it was for the good of both Pippin and their baby. "What are you going to do, James, run off to one of your other girlfriends and leave your future wife here, who need I remind you is carrying your child? Oh, great going." Folding her arms, she leant against the door with a pout, until she saw Pippin and an unfamiliar girl approaching. Shaking her head, Antoinette straightened up and walked over to them.

"Sorry you had to see that Pippin. He'll come back, I know he will." Rolling her eyes, Antoinette turned to the young girl. A Beauxbatons girl, no older than third year or so. "Bonjour," Antoinette said, a kindly smile appearing on her face. "Je m'appelle Antoinette. Et vous?" she asked, extending her hand to the girl, who she presumed spoke French.
 
Christina's eyes widened at what was going on. It was unexpected but not completely.. Well, a boy as nice as Pippin seemed to be must have crazy parents. And then the woman spoke to her. Christina gave her a small, sympathetic smile. Though she couldn't sympathize really; she hadn't got a husband or even a father to speak of.
"Je m'appelle Christina." She took the woman's hand for a moment and gave it a small shake. And then she withdrew it.
Her wand was in her pocket and the way the man was acting half made her want to draw it out.. He was a little intimidating.
Christina, though it was true, knew she had to say something. "Votre fils est très agréable."
 
"Un plasir," Antoinette said, warmly. She was a little out of practice with her French, even though she had only been out of school a few months. She had simply gotten used to speaking English all the time. Maybe she ought to teach Pippin a little French, especially if he was making a new friend...oh, but they were moving. Maybe she could help him write to her, that would be lovely. She was so pleased to see Pippin was meeting new people - she'd be sure to help him get out and about in New Zealand so that he could make lots of new friends.
Antoinette grinned when Christina complimented Pippin. Even with the language barrier, he'd still managed to make a favourable impression. It was the way he was, she supposed. He was such a lovely, kind-natured boy. Nudging Pippin gently, she turned to him, beaming. "She thinks you're very nice," Antoinette explained, with a sly wink, before turning back to Christina. "Tu vas a Beauxbatons, oui? Quelle cours?"
 
He had been hoping to make a favourable impression, that was until James came galloping out of the house with a suitcase trailing distinctly feminine clothes and taking off onto the moor. Pippin didn't know whether to blush with shame or simply roll his eyes. He gave Christina a doubly apologetic look as they moved up towards the house in James' wake before being forced to stop yet again with Antoinette's arrival. Pip pressed his eyebrows together in worry as she shouted after him. She doesn't need this while pregnant, he thought as he fiddled with his fingers. Would bringing James back make her less stressed? In all likelihood, Pippin reasoned, Probably not. He wasn't being particularly helpful since he didn't want to go in the first place.

He sighed with relief when Antoinette was able to make conversation with Christina. He didn't want to make her feel any more uncomfortable with the situation. Suddenly they both looked at him, and Pippin blushed on cue. Did she say something about him? Antoinette nudged him and winked. 'She thinks you're very nice.' Pip went ten shades of red and looked down at his feet with a smile. How very nice of her to say, he thought bashfully. Even so, he wished desperately to know what they were speaking of, otherwise. Pippin leaned over to Antoinette and said "She's very pretty, isn't she?" before shrinking into himself and turning his head to smile. That wasn't why he liked her already, of course. She had been quite merciful in not hexing him the moment he disturbed her walk, so she was obviously a kind person. She was also brave to go walking with him (though he wasn't much of a threat). Even so ... she was pretty and Pippin was a boy. He couldn't believe that he'd said that out loud.
 
Christina's cheeks were delicately pink. It brought out the blue of her eyes more and she smiled at Pippin, stretching her soft pink-red lips.
"Je suis un troisième an." She said to Antoinette, "J'apprendrai l'anglais l'année prochaine.. Au moins, j'espère à." At that point, she turned her head and looked to Pippin, smiling. She never normally trusted people but he was just so friendly and kind and.. Dare she even think it?
Christina found Pippin a little attractive. The first boy she had ever found attractive.
 
((extremely rusty French is extremely rusty.))

Antoinette always thought it was the older sibling's job to embarass the younger, and although she'd never really had siblings of her own (Angus didn't count, nor did Ruby and Pearl for that matter), it was kind of fun to tease Pippin like this. Although she had reported what Christina had said accurately, the way in which she conveyed the message to him was a little fun. "She is," Antoinette agreed, smiling warmly. Oh, now she didn't want to go at all, not now that Pippin had made a friend. She'd make sure to give the girl their address so she could write letters, if she so chose. She'd definately help Pippin with French, so he could write to her. There seemed to be a sort of attraction between the two - mostly friendly, but the matchmaker in Antoinette couldn't help but want more. When they're older, she reminded herself. Neither Pippin, nor Christina were going to make the same mistakes she had.

"J'espere que tu apprendras l'anglais, aussi." She turned to Pippin and whispered, "She will hopefully be learning English next year. Would you like me to teach you some French?" Antoinette offered. "J'ai fini a Beauxbatons l'annee derniere. C'est un bonne ecole, a mon avis." She had very much liked Beauxbatons, sure, it had its drawbacks, but Antoinette had enjoyed her time there. One of the only reasons she wasn't sending Pippin there was because he couldn't speak French - that, and it was a very shallow school, and she knew that Hogwarts would be a lot more accepting of the fact that he couldn't walk. It was very hard to fit in at Beauxbatons. The only reason Antoinette did was because of her looks, really. That, and the fact that she was quite infamous for flirtation.
 
Antoinette shouldn't have encouraged him, for it only made him blush harder. He couldn't be sure, but was Christina actually looking at him? Smiling at him? Perhaps she likes me. Perhaps she wants to be friends, Pippin reasoned with himself, finding himself perfectly satisfied with that explanation but still flustered at the smile he was given. He hadn't been lying when he commented to Antoinette; he did think her rather pretty, but it was not in his nature to take it wistfully further as most other boys his age would have. Intimate hugs, kisses? What were these things to a boy who was only just beginning to learn that he could both receive kindness as well as bestow it. Nevertheless, Antoinette's hints were going to keep him almost permanently red if she kept giving him those pleased and knowing looks.

Pippin nodded energetically when she suggested to him that they learn French. It was probably handy to learn a different language anyway, but if it meant that he and Christina could communicate more easily then he'd have been more than happy to learn. "I'd like that very much," he smiled, glancing at Christina out of the corner of his eyes. She wasn't looking at him, was he? Butterflies were doing a tango in his stomach. "Could you ask her if she'd like to stay for tea? If her mother wouldn't mind, that is," Pippin asked Antoinette. "If that's alright with you. I'm cooking, anyway. I just thought ..." he was red again "... well I know we can't talk very much but I'd like to get to know her, more."
 
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