Till I forget about you

[Matthew Cosgrove]

Burns were an occupational hazard when it came to working with dragons and for Matthew, it seemed spending all his money in the apothecary was in the same vein. The former Ravenclaw seemed to be taking a trip to Obsidian harbour every time he was back in New Zealand and it wasn't for the nostalgia, though the ice cream was still pretty good. As Matthew couldn't rely on Professor Pendleton to provide him with a salve every time he or his colleagues were stupid enough to get burnt he had become pretty good at making it himself. It wasn't so crazy that he had managed it, Matthew had always enjoyed potions and it had been one of his stronger subjects while at HNZ. He was glad to see his school experiences were being put to good use in the real world.

Once he had everything he needed Matthew made his way out of the apothecary and back onto the main street. The street was fairly quiet, one of the advantages of coming shopping during the semester was that the kids were at Hogwarts and not littering the harbour. With nothing else on his shopping list, Matthew was all done for the day and ready to head home when he saw a flurry of familiar blonde hair. Just like that, he was transported school, to being seventeen years old and having deep and less than appropriate feelings for someone he really shouldn't have. "Fancy seeing you here," He said making his way over to the blonde trying (and failing) to sound cool and relaxed.

 

[Alana Finch]

Being pregnant was harder than she'd ever expected. During the first few months, Alana had been sick nearly every single morning. It was not a feeling you ever got used to, at least she never had, and she was always pretty grumpy about it. She still fought that feeling, though it wasn't nearly so frequent these days. Today had actually been the best day yet. Alana hadn't felt sick at all, and she had the day off from work. Glad to be able to enjoy a day where she wasn't being prodded by Healer wands, sneaking off to work so Chaos wouldn't find out, or fighting feeling sick, Alana had dressed and left her house hoping to run some errands. She'd purposely chosen her baggiest shirt, but she didn't owe much that fit that category so the shirt she'd chosen was particularly ill fitting, loose up top and sort of tight around her mid-section. Seemingly overnight, her stomach had gone from being taut and flat to having a decided bump. She had only noticed it in the past few days, and if Chaos had, he hadn't yet said anything to her about it.

It was nice to do normal things, shopping for needed supplies, potions they frequently used and ingredients that they used to make other simple potions in the home. Her next stop had been for some parchment for the house. They didn't send many owls, but they never seemed to have spare parchment when they needed it, and she was tired of writing on the back of envelopes. An odd flutter went through her stomach and Alana paused, having never felt anything like that before. Wondering if she had just felt the baby kick for the first time, Alana was frozen in place, so distracted that it took several moments for her to realize someone was speaking to her. When she did, she was even more flustered than she had been. "Merlin, you scared me" she said, a hand going to her heart. The teenager gave the man before her a once over as she recognized Matthew. He looked far more mature than he had when they had been an item. Alana crossed her arms against her chest and then quickly dropped them as she felt the shirt she was wearing further tighten against her stomach. She played with the shirt as she spoke, pulling it down in an attempt to stretch it out. "It's been a long time, Matthew" she said, her voice a touch lower than it had been when they'd dated. She was also an inch taller, though the heels she had om made it seem like far more.

 

[Matthew Cosgrove]

"Sorry," Matthew said with a slight smirk on his lips. It had been a long time since he had last seen Alana and while in some respects she looked different, she was still exactly the same. "You got taller," Matthew said with a smile. There was a rather obvious difference from the last time he saw her but he wasn't particularly keen on addressing it. Matthew had done his best to not think about what happened to Alana after they broke up and he graduated school. He knew that she would go on to marry Chaos no matter how much she had always said she would try to find a way out, they had broken up because there was no way out.

"You look good," After so long Matthew wasn't sure what to say to Alana without full-on asking if she had married Chaos if she was pregnant with his child if he was good to her like he assured him he would be. "How's your life Alana? Are you happy?"

 

[Alana Finch]

"Heels do wonders" she said with a shy smile. Alana and Matthew had attempted being owl pals, but that had not worked out as well as she wanted it to. But, it was nice to see him. Alana took him in, seeing just how mature he looked. It was hard to see Matthew for what he was, a man, a dragon tamer. She could still easily remember that first night, his suit and bowtie.

Tucking her hair behind her ear as she ducked her head, Alana gazed up at him with a small smile that froze slightly at his questions. Alana had hurt Matthew so much that she wasn't sure what the right answer was. They'd not seen each other in ages, so she wasn't sure that honesty was best here. But, Matthew had always made her feel comfortable, the gap between when they'd seen each other last not seeming so wide when she was in front of him. "I'm ok, Matthew. You worry too much " she said, reaching a hand out to his shoulder, giving him a quick, reassuring rub on his arm. "Walk with me. Tell me about your life" she urged.

 

[Matthew Cosgrove]

"You always did look good in heels," Matthew said his mind going back to the night they met where he heels had contributed to him thinking she was a little older than she actually was but that was a lifetime ago. Matthew sighed when Alana told him he worried too much. It was true, barely a day went by since they broke up when he didn't think about her in some way or another. Knowing what had awaited her when she graduated was reason to worry and while Chaos seemed to actually care about making her happy there was still nothing about Alana's husband that assured Matthew he was capable of being a loving husband. He hoped he was wrong.

Matthew turned and began to walk alongside her, it was then he noticed their height difference. For the most part, they had only communicated by letters since he graduated Hogwarts so he had almost forgot how much taller he was than her, even in her heels. "I'll always worry about you Alana," He sighed and was grateful for the change of subject when it came about. "My life is fine, work is good, the constant traveling hasn't quite lost its appeal yet but it is difficult to have any kind of life here when I'm never around," Matthew slid his hands into his pockets as he continued to walk. "I've started seeing someone, its early days there but things seem to be going well," Matthew didn't want to share too much about Amy, he wasn't sure they were at the point where they were telling everyone about their relationship.

 

[Alana Finch]

Now it was Alana's turn to let out a sigh. For whatever reason, Matthew felt responsible for her, for her happiness. Alana didn't understand it, but she knew she didn't deserve it. Matthew was too good to be dragged into her...drama, and Alana knew that her life would always be fillled with it. She'd never gotten anything she wanted without fighting, kicking, or clawing her way to it. And for those things she couldn't get by those means, she simply let them go as if they never mattered in the first place. Matthew was one of the few exceptions. She knew she could neither fight for him nor let him go, even though she knew she should. To let Matthew go would be the end of a piece of her she was desperate to hang onto, even if she'd never admit that to anyone, not even herself.

So, though the smile on her face was genuine, the feelings that came with the news were plentiful...and complicated. "Matthew, that's great" she smiled, bumping the midpoint between his elbow and shoulder with her shoulder. "I'm glad you're happy" she said, her hand pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "You deserve it. I hope... I hope she's good to you" she said, the words much more difficult to come out than she'd anticipated. Alana did truly hope for his happiness, but it was the other part, that he might one day no longer be around for her that pained her. Alana knew she should be leaning on her own husband, and leaving Matthew alone, but like a moth to a flame, she always felt drawn to keep him close. In reality, she was probably the flame, the one who was far more detrimental to his health and safety. "If she doesn't treat you well, tell her she'll have a friend of yours to answer to" she said, her eyes twinkling, full of mischief as she teased him.