Well the last name is Chaos after all

[Isabella Chaos]

As soon as Isabella's father had gotten her owl saying she found a place to live, with Mike, he had sent her a Howler demanding that he meet her roommate right away. Ever since Isabella had gotten pregnant two years ago, it was understandable that he be extremely wary of any boy she interacted with. That's why Isabella was intent on not telling her father that Mike was more than just her roommate. She didn't know how Mike would take being called just her roommate, but she'd explain to him after the dinner that it was for their own good.

Fastening her coat over her dress, because although it was Spring in New Zealand, where the two now resided, Winter was quickly approaching in Italy so they had to at least dress weather appropriate for when they Apparated outside her house. "Ready?" she asked Mike before lacing her fingers with his and Apparating the two of them just outside the gates of her home. Seeing it again brought back all the memories of her pregnancy and when she had been forced to hide in shame in this house, and after the baby was born she had retreated back into hiding. The house brought bitter feelings to Isabella now, she knew this was why she had to move out, so she could move on. She squeezed Mike's hand for support as they walked up the steps to the door and knocked tentatively. Isabella felt a little silly knocking on the place she had called home for the past nineteen years, but was glad to be free from its walls. Isabella looked over at Mike to give him a small encouraging smile, she felt like he was going to need it. She had only ever had one boy over and that was Thomas Smith, back before when they had not even officially dated. Isabella had felt it was best to leave this bit of information out because she knew Mike was not fond of Thomas, with good reason. She remembered that her father had not liked Thomas, especially since when she had opened the door he had been undressing; she didn't know how her father would take the image of her and Mike holding hands so she began fixing her hair as an excuse to let go. She didn't mean to be mean to Mike, but it really was for his own good, he'd soon find out.

 

[Mike Gray]

It didn't help Mike's nerves that Bella's Father had sent her a Howler, commanding her to take Mike to meet him. It was understandable given the situation; that Bella had been pregnant, and her Father was presumably looking out for her, wanting the best for his little girl, not wanting her to make the same mistake twice. But the fact it was a Howler was what made Mike's heart pump faster. He put on his best suit, and smartened himself up, fastening his top button and tie. He didn't really like wearing suits, they were fairly uncomfortable, but it seemed suitable for the occassion, first impressions and all that Mike mused. Taking Bella's soft hand, they apparated.

Christ Mike shivered, the cold hitting him. Bella took his hand. "Ready as I'll ever be" he replied softly, his hands slightly sweat with nerves. "Bella" he said, stopping in the streets. "I just wanted to say that you look really beautiful tonight" he said honestly, with a weak little smile. He looked at the house whilst Isabella knocked. It was really something. He closed his eyes, focusing on the task at hand. Mike had never had to meet another girl's parents before, and alls Mike wanted to do was make a good, honest impression of himself. Something to make his own Father proud, wherever he was.

He looked as Bella was fixing her hair, and he just stared at her. Not last week was he down that he'd never get to see her again, but now he'd seen her for the first time in a long time, and even better was they were back together. Mike truly counted himself lucky, and that gave him some encouragement. He loved Bella, and in his mind that was all that mattered. It didn't matter to him now whether Mr. Chaos liked him or not, whether Mike painted himself to be a complete jackass or gentlemen. He loved Bella, and no person, no matter how close or important to Isabella could change that. His nerves had resided slightly, and he found himself more comfortable. "Love you Bella" he whispered, the chill of the Italian winter swirling around him.

 

[Isabella Chaos]

Isabella looked over at Mike as he had complimented her and beamed. She still couldn't fathom how supportive and understanding Mike had been with everything. She knew if it wasn't for him she would probably still be living in this house, haunted by the memory of her late son and unable to move on. "Thanks," she said blushing slightly. "You clean up nicely too," she said in jest, fixing his tie playfully. Yes, if it wasn't for Mike she knew she wouldn't even be able to smile.

Truth be told she still felt as if she didn't deserve him, there were probably way more deserving girls out there for him. She couldn't understand what he saw in her, especially not now. Part of her was worried sick that he was in love with the old image he had of her, someone that was long gone, and once he realized just how irreparably damaged she was he would leave her. She was so afraid that she was going to scare him away soon, and this dinner with her father was definitely not going to help. As they waited for her father to open the door, Mike seemed to know what she was feeling and reassured her with three simple words. It was as if he could never tire of saying it to her, or hearing it. She felt warmth rush through her body at his simple declaration of love for her and she smiled back saying, "I love you too," with a smile just before the door opened.

 

[Charles Chaos]

Charles was definitely not looking forward to tonight, but he had arranged it because it was necessary. He intended to convince his daughter that she was safer here, where he could keep an eye on her. Sending her to his alma mater had been a mistake that blew up in his face two years ago with news that she had been impregnanted by a teacher of the school. Charles was completely outraged that his daughter had fallen victim to seduction by a professor who had the nerve to take advantage of her naivety. Needless to say he had promptly gotten the sleaze bag fired. And Charles was going to continue to get rid of any boy who wasn't good enough for his daughter, that was why this dinner was necessary.

He stood in the living room pacing back and forth in front of the fireplace. Although it was winter he had not lit a fire because he was expecting his company to arrive through Floo, requiring an unlit fireplace from which to enter. He was surprised to hear a knock at his door instead, and crossed to look through the peephole. He saw his daughter and a boy standing in the cold looking a little too affectionately at each other and for a second Charles was tempted to leave them out there to freeze but he couldn't do that to his daughter so he reluctantly opened the door. "You didn't have to knock on the door of your own home, Bella," he said to his daughter with a soft smile, completely ignoring the boy beside her. "Well, come in then," he said, stepping aside to let them in, wishing he could just slam the door in the boy's face instead.

He led them into the living room and gestured for them to sit as the food was not ready yet. He took a seat in an armchair that faced them so he could keep his eyes on them completely. "We've missed you Isabella," he told her, referring to his other children, Valentina and Capulet, who were almost six now. "How have you been?" he couldn't help but worry aloud.

 

[Isabella Chaos]

Isabella inhaled sharply as her father finally opened the door and flashed him a nervous smile. She bit her lip as he told her she didn't have to knock on her home and refrained from telling him that she no longer considered this her home anymore. Before her pregnancy she had only ever spent her summer and winter holidays here anyway. She simply responded with, "Hi Dad," and tucked her hair behind her ear nervously. At least Mike's not taking his shirt off, she thought thankfully, remembering Thomas' unexpected entrance.

As her father let them in and to the living room she took a seat on the loveseat, gesturing for Mike to sit beside her though she maintained her distance from him so her father wouldn't get suspicious. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes as her father attempted to use her siblings against her as if trying to guilt trip her into living here again. She had tried her hardest to explain to the twins why she was leaving though she didn't think they understood the complex emotions behind it. She hadn't wanted to tell them that she felt 'trapped' her because she didn't want them to begin looking at their house as a prison. "Well they can come visit me anytime," she countered sweetly, though since it technically wasn't her house she didn't know whether inviting her twin terrors was welcome.

"I've been doing a lot better actually," Isabella responded to her dad's question, trying not to feel so bad that he sounded worried. Her annoyance at the fact that her father was being rude and had not introduced himself to Mike yet quickly diminished any sympathy she felt for him. She sighed and said, "Well since you aren't going to do it, I will. Dad, this is Mike, my..roommate," she said, hoping her dad hadn't caught the pause. "Mike, this is my Dad, Charles" she said in return, finding it funny to call him by his first name.

 

[Mike Gray]

The door opened and the nerves began again. He watched as Bella and her Father interacted, but he completely ignored Mike. Mike followed Isabella's suit, and entered what was presumably was the living room. He watched as her Father gestured for them to fit, and took a seat on the same couch that Bella sat on. A nervous smile was sat on his face, in an attempt to mask the nervousness and comfortableness that Mike was feeling at that current time. Mike was getting ready to introduce himself, but it seemed her Father controlled tonight's agenda, and Mike sat patiently, listening as Bella and Mr.Chaos spoke to each other about Bella's health and well-being. Mike listened to her reply, glad to see that she was doing better, but Mike wondered whether it was a lie, or exaggerated slightly, in order to please her Father and stop his worrying, which given the situation was natural. Mike casuallly looked around the room, in which it had to be said that the house was genuinely nice, and well furnished. That reminded Mike, that they'd need to go shopping in order to refurnish his apartment, make it more suitable for both males and females rather than the former. Mike's apartment was fairly small in size, but he was saving to buy a house in the near future. He had promised he'd give everything and more to Bella, and he intended to fulfill it.

Bella then did introductions, and Mike hovered about his seat and lent forward. "Pleasure to meet you Mr Chaos. This is a lovely house you have Sir", abiding by all the niceties and extending his hand. He wondered whether Charles would like Mike, and get on with him, the guy that was dating his daughter, although it seemed he did not know this, as Bella had described Mike as her 'roomate', and conveniently left out the part that they were dating. He wondered whether he knew about the two of them, and if not what would he do when he found out about them. It wasn't if he found out, it was only a matter of when. This annoyed Mike slightly. He wanted to stay on the good side of Charles, and so was prepared to be upfront and honest about everything, including the minor fact that he was dating his daughter. It did not sit well with Mike that they had to hide this from him. After all, Mike would be under scrutiny from Charles, and so would have to stop interacting with Bella like lovers and act just like a friend. Needless to say he would be having words with Bella later about keeping that a secret from her Father, rather than being honest and not scared of his reaction towards the two of them dating. He did not understand why she didn't tell him. Surely that'd make matters worse? Mike asked himself, but it was not up to him. Bella knew her Father better than Mike did, and it was Bella's decision on what to tell him and what not to tell him. Of couse, when he found out they were dating, Bella would probably not be blamed, it would be Mike who'd take the blame, and probably get locked into an unwanted argument with Charles, when it was Mike who wanted to be forthcoming and honest, and not deceitful and keeping things in secret. Irony

 

[Charles Chaos]

Charles studied his daughter, trying to get a read on her, wondering whether she was truly doing better as she said she was or if she was just lying to put him at ease. It had pained him to see how broken up she had been after the stillbirth and he didn't want her shoved back out into the world if she wasn't ready. Still, he saw that she was finally able to smile and that simple act definitely showed an improvement in her well being.

Inevitably, Bella noticed his deliberate attempt to ignore her guest and took it upon herself to introduce the two males to each other and saw that Mike had risen to shake his hand. Charles looked down at it for a while, contemplating not shaking it, but reluctantly did so, gripping it as painfully as he could. He stared Mike down, almost daring him to wince and reveal to Bella what he'd done. "When you say roommate," he began, releasing the younger boy, "you don't really mean you two share a room, do you?" he asked sternly. His eyes were dead set upon Mike, as it was he whom he was addressing the question to. The thought of Isabella sharing a room with a boy made him frantic with panic and if the boy made any indication that they did he would throw him out in a second.

 

[Mike Gray]

The handshake was not a handshake. It was an attempt to push Mike's buttons, test him. He sat back down, still attempting to smile. He didn't know what to expect from Bella's Father. Whether he'd be pleasant to him or not. Well, now Mike had found out and part of him expected it, knew that it was paternal love, him watching out for his daughter, more so than ever due to the unfortunate events that had happened in Bella's life. Mike wished that he could say to Charles that they were dating, that he won't hurt Bella, that he would never hurt Bella, which was the gospel truth. He'd never lay a finger on her, no matter how stressed he got, no matter if and how much they argued, he'd never hurt the woman he loved. But he bit his lip, suppressing what he really wanted to say. Of couse, even if I did tell him this, he'd probably still dislike me Mike mused. Mike wondered whether he should give him a dose of his own medicine, be unpleasant to him, rude to him. But for now, Mike decided to stay civil and pleasant towards him. Mike could understand, given the situation that her Father was acting this way. Perhaps he's a nice guy Mike told himself, but hoped if he had a daughter in a similar situation, that he would be pleasant to her boyfriend, and not drive him away. Didn't he want Bella to be happy? Didn't he want what was best for her? And Mike believed that he could honestly provide that.

A question was asked. Sh!t Mike thought, caught off guard. "No sir, we don't. Bella has her own room" Mike lied, hopefully convincingly. Mike did not want to lie to her Father at all, about anything, and create even more of a dislike towards himself. But he had to, if her Father was treating him like this under when he was under the pretence that they were roommates, he didn't want to find out what he would do if he found out they were more than just roommates. Mike retook his seat, his palms still sweaty, hoping the lie was convincing, enough to divert suspicion away from him, from them. He didn't look back at Bella, for fear of giving it all away, after all his Father was watching him, his actions like a hawk. He sat their silently, awkwardly. Should of brought a knife to cut the tension Mike mused to himself, looking above her Father, who was sitting across from him.

 

[Isabella Chaos]

Isabella bit her lip anxiously as her father and Mike officially exchanged greetings, well Mike more so than her father, but he had at least shaken his hand which was good enough for her at this point. Her heart rate speed up immensely when she heard the question her father had asked Mike and was so close to opening her mouth to answer it but was smart enough to stop herself. It would've been suicidal for her to have answered for Mike and would've totally tipped her father off.

Sure, Isabella technically had her own room, she just never slept in it. She had discovered that cuddling, just cuddling, in bed had been very helpful in her recovery to happiness. Instead the former Slytherin just nodded calmly in agreement with Mike's statement. "You can see the room sometime," she added to convince her father that such a room existed. Though as soon as she had said it Isabella instantly regretted it. She had just given her father an invitation to visit whenever he wanted. She bit her lip slightly, making a mental note not to ever give her father the address.

Just then, a thundering of footsteps could be heard descending from the stairs and in a flash Isabella's siblings appeared, oblivious to all the tension in the living. "Bella!" her younger sister squealed, running over to hug her. Isabella wrapped her arms around the little girl and kissed her lightly atop her blonde head. Valentina was the spitting image of their mother and right now Isabella couldn't help but wonder how her mother would have been in this situation. Would she have been able to see how great Mike was for Bella? Would she have eased her fathers nerves? Isabella tried not thinking about it too much and was glad her brother Capulet had instead run up for his hug. "Hey Cappie!" she said excitedly, ruffling his hair. In the meantime her sister had gone over to sit on her father's lap. "Daddy who's that?" the curious little blonde asked, pointing at Mike. At Tina's question Isabella looked up at her father expectantly, trying to conceal a smirk as she waited for her father's response.

 

[Charles Chaos]

Charles looked skeptically from Mike back to Bella, trying to see whether the two were lying. It was moments like this when he wished he had practiced Legilimency so he could know the absolute truth and be able to kick out this guy already. Charles could tell just by looking at him that his daughter could do so much better. What could this guy possibly provide for his daughter when she could have anything she asked for already? Charles couldn't help but look at him with distaste. First it had been that puny little boy who had been taking his shirt off without even having entered his home, then she had been seduced by that despicable professor, now Isabella was bringing home this guy. No, his daughter could obviously not be trusted to make the right choice in partner when she kept bringing commoners, which is why he had taken it upon himself. It was for her own good.

Just then his younger children emerged from their rooms, obviously having heard company downstairs and grown bored of their toys. He watched as they greeted Isabella with longing and pointed out, "See how much they missed you," just to see if seeing her siblings would change her mind. He opened his arms out for Tina who instantly settled into his lap as usual. Just then Tina looked up at him with her mother's blue eyes and pointed across at Mike asking who he was. Charles cleared his throat and said in the nicest voice he could muster. "That's Bella's friend," he stressed, looking at Mike in warning. Friends, that was all they could be if Charles could help it. At this, Cappie piped up asking, "Cool, where'd you guys meet?" Charles looked over at his son and saw that he was asking Mike and not Bella and tried concealing the disgruntled huff that escaped his lips.

 

[Mike Gray]

Oh yes please come to my home and check out your daughters room. I'll be as kind a host as you were to me thought Mike bitterly. It seemed that his lie had been convincing as Charles had dropped the subject, at least for now anyway. A moment or two later, 2 children came bounding into the living room. Mike was secretly glad of their presence, something to steer the agenda of Bella and Mike's relationship for the time being. Their was no doubt it'd come up again this evening in some shape or form, but for now Mike enjoyed the peace of not being under Charles's watchful eyes. Mike tried to recall their names, but couldn't remember if Bella had actually told him their names, so he'd just have to keep listening for any names dropped. He smiled pleasantly as they interacted with Bella. It must be tough for her living away from home, not being able to see her siblings, and of course her Father, but Mike didn't mind her going to visit her family in Italy often, and wouldn't decline going with her if she needed.

The girl asked a question and pointed at Mike. He went slightly red, the spotlight shining on him. He listened to Charles's reply about her being Bella's friend, and heard the emphasis he put on friends. Mike continued to act normal, but couldn't help wonder whether he had cottoned onto the idea that they were more than friends. Of course he'd be right in thinking so, but for now Mike couldn't be bothered dealing with Charles and the argument that was happen if he found out. But if it was found out tonight, Mike knew what he'd say, even if it hurt Charles's he'd say it, but ultimately he didn't want to get on Charles's bad side. After all, if Mike wanted his relationship with Bella to last for the rest of his life then he should at least make the effort to be pleasant to Charles, not matter how much of a dislike he took to Mike.

"We err, befriended whilst at Hogwarts. I was the year above Bella. We met at the Student's Defence Association, in which I helped to run it. And, our friendship continued throughout the two years before I graduated. Of course as our friendship grew, so did our rivalry, especially in Quidditich, in which I played for Gryffindor, and Bella obviously for Slytherin. But that's what made our friendship quite strong, was our rivalry to outperform each other" he lied, again to Charles. It wasn't strictly true that they'd befriended whilst in the SDA. They had been in the SDA together, but had befriended earlier than that, and were obviously more than just friends during their time at Hogwarts. "Then I graduated, and Bella left, and our friendship grew apart. And then the other week, I saw her, for the first time in a while. I started speaking to her, asking her how she'd been, and she told me of the unfortunate, saddening news, and said she was looking for a place to stay. I had a spare room in my apartment, and offered her the room, as I would to any of my friends in need" Mike told him, hoping that would also convince him that they were just friends.

 

[Isabella Chaos]

Although Isabella had first been relieved to see her siblings because it meant they would distract their father's attention away from Mike, it had unfortunately been turned back on him by them. All the Chaos' listened as Mike told the story of the way the two met, leaving it as innocently vague as possible. The Slytherin girl chuckled as he mentioned their rivalry in Quidditch; though the sport had once been a huge part of her life, obviously as a Co-captain of the team from a young age, she had not played it in well over three years. Her time in the air playing against Mike seemed like ages ago, another lifetime ago, before the incident. It seemed that was how she timed things now, before and after, though nothing notable had happened after.

Her brother Cappie lit up with excitement at the mention of Quidditch and said, "You play Quidditch?! Awesome! I keep asking my dad to buy me a broom but he won't," the five year old pouted. "But I found one of Bella's old brooms and tried it, look!" he said, pulling up the leg of his khaki pants to reveal a badly scraped knee indicating he fell off.

While her brother had only seemed to care that Mike spoke of Quidditch, her sister seemed to have caught on to something else. "So you're not the daddy of Bella's baby?" she said calmly and clearly, her blue eyes wide with what seemed like disappointment.

Instantly Isabella cried, "Tina! Cappie! That's enough." Talk of Quidditch and scraped knees she knew Mike could handle, but Tina had entered territory that she felt would be too much for Mike, as it was even for her. She caught Mike's eye to give him an apologetic look, biting her lip with anxiety, feeling once again that she was bound to scare him off eventually with her baggage. "Is dinner ready yet? I'm starving," Isabella said to change the subject.

 

[Charles Chaos]

Truthfully Charles did not give a damn about how his daughter and this guy had met because it did not matter to him. He didn't intend for this boy to be in Bella's life for much longer. Though because Cappie had asked he had to listen to the boy talk of how they had met. Fury flashed in Charles' eyes as Mike brought up Isabella's pregnancy. Although Isabella had been confined to her home and he, Isabella, and her caretaker had discussed it often, before and after the baby had been delivered, he had always tried to keep it from his younger children.

He felt they were too young to understand the complexity of Bella's situation, though clearly Valentina had just proved him wrong as she seemed to have pieced a few things together. He was grateful Isabella had quieted them and narrowed his eyes at Mike thinking the guy had just made his first major mistake. He also wondered why her daughter had told him of the incident. Since she had been hiding out here no one else knew of her pregnancy and since the baby had unfortunately not survived Isabella had gotten a second chance at living a normal life. Why had she not just told him she had been traveling abroad or something else to explain her absence?

Charles sighed, oblivious to the fact that his daughter could never go back to living as she had before, and gently lifted Tina off his lap, placing her in his seat so he could stand up. "I'll go check on the dinner," he said to the room.

He was gone for a few minutes before he returned to the living room and said, "Dinner's ready, let's sit down." He gestured for them all to make their way into the dining room. Charles glanced over at the empty fireplace and then looked down at his watch, growing irritable at the thought of having to have dinner with Mike.

 

[Isabella Chaos]

Isabella took the opportunity that her father was gone to look over at Mike and say, "I'm sorry for all this, really." She reached over and gave his hand a small squeeze of encouragement since her father was not here to see. She was just glad that the worst seemed to be over, or so she thought. Isabella just hoped dinner was ready so that they could be distracted by the food and then the sooner dinner was done with, the sooner they could leave and Isabella could make it up to Mike somehow.

When her father returned announcing dinner was ready Isabella sighed and stood up, smoothing out her dress. "I want to sit next to you Bella!" her sister said, pulling on her dress. Isabella smoothed over it again, hating when her siblings did that, and smiled softly as she said, "Sorry, Mike's going to sit next to me, okay?" Her sister had stamped her feet in annoyance but ran off into the kitchen to claim her seat, with her twin brother trailing behind to do the same. She could already hear their fighting over the same chair.

Isabella looked over at Mike and motioned for him to follow, smiling at him. Once they got to the dining room she noticed that there had been six plates set on the table, three on one side, three on the opposite, so they could all sit facing each other. Her brother and sister had already sat themselves on one side, leaving a chair in between the two that was probably reserved for their father. That left the three opposite seats vacant. "Dad..." Isabella called out tentatively since he still seemed to be in the living room. "Why are there six seats at the table?"

 

[Mike Gray]

Mike smiled when the talk moved onto Quidditch, even if it was only for a moment or two. Suddenly BLAM. The next question hit him. 'So you're not the daddy of Bella's baby?'. . Mike's jaw dropped slightly, caught off guard for the second time to day, but this time worse. He hadn't been expecting it, especially from a child. "Err, n-no. I'm just a friend of Bella's" Mike managed to say, the question still stinging. To be brutally honest Mike hadn't given that much thought to the father of the deceased child. What if the child had lived and Bella still came over to New Zealand needing a place to stay. Would I have given her a key to my apartment, prepared to help look after a child that was not mine. Would I be up for the role of step-dad? Would I be willing to give that child everything, treat it as my own? Mike'd like to think so, but he was young. Idealistically he shouldn't have to worry about things like that for years to come. He still had his own life to live, himself to look after, never mind a girlfriend and a child that was not his. However, his brother had once told him, that it does not do well to dwell on what has happened and what could of happened, and Mike remembered it after his mind was buzzing about 'what if scenarios'.

The change of conversation to dinner was well welcomed in Mike's mind. He didn't want to dwell on 'baggage' that Bella carried with her. He'd have time to think about it later. Right now, Mike just wanted to get tonight over with, and focus on any questions later on, when they were alone, without her Father's watchful eyes gazing upon Mike. Peace at last Mike thought when Charles left the room. He turned to Bella, unsure of what to say, what to do, but thankfully she pipped up first. "It's fine" Mike lied. He didn't want to upset Bella and make a scene, but tonight had been eventful, at least for his mind. It had opened up some questions and scenarios that Mike had not thought of in some cases and in other cases things Mike had been avoiding thinking about. Her Father came back, and Mike swiftly, sat the way he was when Charles was there only minutes earlier. Mike got up when Bella gestured for him to, and he walked behind her, stopping as Bella pointed out something he hadn't noticed, something important.

6 seats for 5 people Mike told himself. Who was missing? It seems as though either Charles can't count or there is another guest, a late arrival who is due here. Mike wondered who it was. Knowing her Father it was probably someone to annoy Mike, to make the evening more uncomfortable for the young Auror, something to make the evening one not to forget. He waited and looked over at Charles who was in the living room, and listened quietly for her Father's reply as to why there was an extra seat at the dinner table.

 

[Charles Chaos]

Charles remained behind in the living room, trying to remain as patient as possible. He really hoped that his godson would not let him down and force him to have dinner with only Mike for company. He looked down at his watch, only a few minutes late, he was sure he would be here any minute. He heard his daughter call out from the dining room, asking why there were six plates at the dinner table. Suddenly he heard the unmistakable sounds of someone arriving by Floo and he sighed in relief. He went over to greet his godson happily, clapping him on the shoulder and helping him dust off any ash he had. Then he led him over to the dining room where the rest of the party was. "You didn't think you'd be the only one with a guest, did you?" he asked, his tone of voice now a lot more devilishly happy. He stepped aside so the two of them could see his own guest.

 

[Charles Fera]

Charles was somewhat anxious about Quidditch practice today, it had nothing to do with the game itself, Charles was more than capable when it came to the game but he was just worried that it would go over the scheduled time. Normally Charles wouldn’t care but today he had other plans instead of the usual piss up after practice. He had promised his godfather that he would come over for a meal tonight as Bella had decided to come over. He hadn’t seen the spoilt brat in ages and he was interested to see her after what happened her in the last year. Of course Charles wasn’t supposed to know about Bella being pregnant but of course he had overheard his parents talking about it when Bella’s father had come over to tell them. Charles felt sorry for his godfather, he seemed so distressed about the whole situation and of course with Daphne not being around anymore he had no one to help him through it. The young Quidditch player on the other hand had no consideration for Bella as it was her own stupid fault for getting pregnant in the first place. Charles knew that he of all people should probably have some consideration as he himself was in the situation of being a young parent but it was different for him being the father; he wasn’t the one that was actually pregnant. As soon as practice was over Charles quietly cursed to himself, he was already late, granted not by much but he knew this was important to his godfather so even 10 minutes was late enough. Landing on the Quidditch pitch he apparated home and he quickly got out of his Quidditch Uniform and into the outfit he had left out for tonight. He gave himself the once over and admitted that he looked good, good enough to impress anyway. Knowing he was late as it was he took 5 minutes to go say goodnight to his little baby girl, Adele, who admittedly wasn’t that little anymore, she was starting to grow up so much and Charles couldn’t believe how big she had gotten. Giving her one more kiss he gave her back to her mother and left for the Chaos house.

He knew this house almost as well as he knew his own so when he arrived at the fireplace he knew in his head where he was going. As he was cleaning himself he was greeted by Charles. “Sorry I’m late.” he said the two left the room and made their way to the dining room. By what his godfather was saying he obviously hadn’t told his guests about the extra visitor. Stepping into the room as if this was the most natural thing in the world Charles made his way to his seat. “Evening all, sorry about my tardiness, work went on later than it was meant to be tonight.” He added as he stopped beside Bella. “Roommate, really?” he whispered as he gave her a fake hug, a small smirk on his face, tonight was going to be fun! Taking his seat he gave Bella a quick glance, wondering her reaction to him being here was going to be like.

 

[Isabella Chaos]

Isabella waited for her father's reply, growing wary of his silence before hearing someone entering from the fireplace, giving her the answer she sought, that there was definitely another guest and the extra plate on the table was not an accident. She wondered briefly who it could be before her father came in looking somewhat smug and once she saw who the unexpected (at least to her) guest was, her eyebrows arched upward in disbelief, non-verbally telling her dad 'Really?!'

Having grown up with Charlie since he was her father's godson, the prick felt comfortable enough in her house to stride in whenever he pleased, knowing her father wouldn't ever get mad at him for it, when if she and Mike had been even a second late they would've never heard the end of it. Isabella scoffed at Charlie as he came over and hugged her just to annoy her. She heard his question in her ear and glared at him wishing she could jinx him right here and now. "What's he doing here?" Isabella asked her father, distaste obvious in her voice.

 

[Charles Chaos]

Unlike Isabella who seemed thoroughly displeased with his godson's arrival, his other children happily cried out "Charlie!" in greeting. Charles made a note to point this out to Isabella later, that her younger siblings, and the entire rest of the family really, already approved of Charlie and she wouldn't have to waste her time with anyone else. The older man couldn't help but smirk in approval at his godson's blatant disregard for the other male guest, Mike, as he only greeted Bella and then took his seat.

At his daughter's prompt Charles looked at her reproachfully because of the tone she had and said, "I invited him, of course. I wanted to be able to enjoy this dinner with a guest I actually like." For a brief moment he felt sorry for his godson for having to put him through this dinner with someone like Mike, but he knew it was a necessary thing for Bella to be able to compare the two males. That way she could see how she had been associating herself with the wrong class of men and see how right Charlie was for her. The man hadn't exactly told his godson of his plan to unite the two together at this dinner, but didn't think Charlie would mind showing off how much better he was than Mike. Besides, if his daughter and Mike were really only roommates as they said they were, it didn't matter that Charles would be pairing Isabella and Charlie up.

"Well, come on, let's take a seat," he said as he sat in the empty seat between Tina and Cappie, obviously a lot more cheery since the arrival of his godson Charlie, respectively named after him.

 

[Isabella Chaos]

Isabella was so upset at her father and his statement that she swore you could probably see steam coming out of her. But she wasn't going to let her father's antics get to her so she inhaled deeply to calm herself down and forced a smile on her face. As her father took a seat she looked over at Mike and mouthed 'I'm so sorry!' because now he was in for it she realized, the night had just started. Isabella was going to need to seriously make it up to Mike somehow.

With two Charles' to torment Mike, Isabella was going to need to be on her game and keep up with the two Durmstrang graduates. The brunette reluctantly took a seat beside Charlie, stepping on his foot in the process, and motioned for Mike to sit beside her so he was across the table from her little sister Tina. She reached for his hand to hold under the table and once again had to be the one to introduce the two males to each other. "Mike this is my dad's godson, Charlie," she motioned to her left where the Quidditch player was seated and in turn said, "And Charlie this is my roommate Mike." She looked at Charlie with a look that said 'Don't you dare say a word' because it was obvious by his remark in her ear earlier that he knew Mike was more than her roommate.

Once they were all seated, the maid came in and started serving the food, a roasted turkey with all the usual side dishes and a tofu alternative for Isabella as always. After they had all been served Isabella glanced over at Mike to see how he was doing so far.

 

[Mike Gray]

A figure emerged from the fireplace, having obviously travelled by floo powder. He listened as Bella spoke, questioning why the guest was here, and Mike gathered from her tone of voice she didn't like him. He listened to her Father's response 'I wanted to be able to enjoy this dinner with a guest I actually like'. Mike arched his eyebrows. What a b*st*rd Mike thought to himself of Bella's Father. Mike had been nothing but respectful to him, and hadn't actually done anything to Charles and yet he was saying that. At least Mike now knew where he stood. Well that's you off the Christmas Card list Mike told himself jokingly. Well, he had Bella, and to be quite frank that was all that he needed. He didn't need to be on good terms with either of these two people, Mike said, quickly deducing that the new arrival would be on Charles's side and take his view on Mike. He was only being civil and polite for Bella's sake.

Mike saw Isabella mouth an apology, but he didn't reply. Mike was again uncomfortable with the whole dinner saga, and now with his new arrival who'd presumably take Charles's side, Mike just couldn't be bothered fighting against the both of them. Bella had also annoyed him slightly, in which her lack of truthfulness about their relationship to her Father had put Mike in a corner, in which he had to lie twice in order to corroborate with Bella's story of they were just roommates in order to stop Charles from finding out and her from getting in trouble for lying. Mike was glad that Bella sat in the middle of them, and also glad that he wasn't sitting opposite Charles. He gave a small smile to Tina, whilst Bella introduced Mike to the 6th member of the dinner table. "Pleasure" Mike lied, standing up and going behind Bella's chair to extend his hand, again abiding by the niceties. Mike then retook his seat and sat meekly, until the maid entered serving dinner. Let's hope it isn't poisoned Mike told himself, half joking and half serious, flashing his eyes quickly to Charles. I wouldn't put him past it Mike mused, before deciding to break the silence. "Charles, I heard you mention that you worked later. What exactly do you work as?" Mike enquired.

 

[Charles Fera]

Upon entering he heard the two youngest Chaos’ greet Charles as they normal did anytime he visited. He very much enjoyed the fact that the rest of the family loved him to bits, all bar Isabella but that suited Charles just fine because he wasn’t very keen on Isabella either. Going over to Tina and Cappie, he ruffled their hair playfully before hearing what he was waiting for; Isabella’s response. He scoffed lightly to himself; it was quite weak compared to what he was expecting from her. What made it even better was his Godfather’s response; oh this boy...whatever his name was, was going to be in for a good time tonight; stuck between two people that didn’t like him – granted he didn’t know the guy yet but he knew that his Godfather had a good sense of judgement so he trusted his opinion. He smiled briefly in his Godfather’s direction to know that he appreciated the comment, in a ‘glad to be of assistance’ way. When they were told to sit Charles took his seat and enjoyed the two ‘roommates’ were separated, his Godfather had set this all up well. Charles sat and listened to Bella give the introductions that were needed. He had to hide the smirk on his face when Bella introduced Mike as her roommate, the tension was obvious that it was clear to see they weren’t just roommates. Although, he had decided to not put his Godfather through any stress tonight, if he didn’t already suspect that was the case, and remain quiet on the subject – well for now anyway.

When the food arrived the young man complimented his Godfather on another extraordinary meal – going over the top was always a good thing. When Mike spoke up Charles looked in his direction, he was so used to being called Charlie when he was at the Chaos household due to the complications it was cause due their being two ‘Charles’. “I’m a Professional Quidditch Player. Beater for The Thundelarra Thunderers.” he said proudly. Deciding that he should at least try and make some sort of conversation he asked in return, “So..Mike was it?..What is it you do for a living?” Wondering what sort of answer he was going to get, probably something as boring as he looked. Seriously what did Isabella see in this guy?

 

[Mike Gray]

You've got something brown on your nose Mike joked to himself about Charlie when he complimented Charles's food. Mike had no issues paying compliments when they were deserved, but over the top, brown nosing comments annoyed Mike. it would be hard for Mike to make an unbiased judgement on him, but so far, things weren't looking good. "I used to play Beater for Gryffindor" Mike said, even though he knew he wouldn't care about anything that was to do with Mike. "Swapped to Keeper in the Fourth year" he added. "I'm not so good with teams inside of Oceania. Are they any good? " Mike asked. " I've never heard of them" Mike added as it was obvious Charlie was proud that he played for them, adding some spice to the conversation. He took a mouthful of turkey, and chewed, before swallowing it. "Myself? I'm an Auror. Have been for about 6 months now" Mike replied, looking at Bella, and then at Charles. He wondered whether Bella's Father knew he was an Auror and if so what he thought about him being one. It was still a respectable profession in today's society, but at least Charles's wouldn't have a little argument about Mike's poor choice of profession. Hopefully Mike thought. After all, it was a good salary that he was on, and could afford to look after Bella with it, and live a more than comfortable life together. "Do you still work Charles?" Mike enquired, painfully, diverting his attention to Bella's Father, making small talk with tonight's Host. Just get tonight over with, and then hopefully you won't have to see him very often. Once every blue moon would be more than enough Mike told himself.

Mike looked back at Charlie. He looked quite young, around his age. "So, Charlie, how old are you if you don't mind me asking? You look around my age" Mike added. "Where you schooled at Hogwarts? What House, if you were?" Mike asked. He couldn't recall seeing his face at Hogwarts, but he may have not recognised him. After all, he hadn't recognised Hadan when he befriended her at the Mākutu Dinette, and she was in Bella's year, Bella's house even. Mike took another mouthful of turkey, looking for any minor point to criticise it. He wasn't going to air his criticisms, but it kept Mike amused, which was the main thing, as Mike didn't find anything else amusing, or generally enjoyable this evening to be brutally honest. Although, at least being with Bella, made it bearable Mike told himself, pretending to itch his thigh, and quickly put his hand on her thigh, in an attempt to show that everything was ok, for now.

 

[Isabella Chaos]

To say that Isabella was uneasy was an understatement, but she tried concealing it well as the men surrounding her tried to converse. She felt gratitude and admiration for Mike for being such a Gryffindor and trying to make the best of the situation despite both Charles' sour attitudes. She really didn't know how he didn't just pull out his wand and hex them both, something she very much wished she could do right now to give Mike a break. But Mike was a Gryffindor through and through, and didn't seem to be needing her help as he soldiered on and braved conversation with Charlie, the last person she ever wanted to talk to.

Isabella had been drinking her water when Mike commented to Charlie that she'd never heard of his team and couldn't help but chortle into the water. She put the glass down, carefully wiping he mouth and said to him, "Don't worry, lots of people haven't," with a smirk on her face meant for Charlie. The former Slytherin girl found it endearing that Mike was still attempting to be civil with Charlie and her father when they hadn't extended the same courtesy for him and smiled slightly when she felt his hand on her thigh. She laid her hand over his in support and gratitude but only for a second before quickly shoving it away from her out of fear that her father would sense any the under-the-table action and misinterpret it.

 

[Charles Fera]

Charles smiled to himself in a slight smug way as he ate some more of the food. What not many jobs topped that of a Professional Quidditch Player in the Wizarding World, it was a well paying job, you were famous so everyone knew you and a relatively safe job if you considered that every broken bone, which especially for his position was normal, was easily fixable. Charles vaguely heard Mike go on about how he used to play beater, you wouldn’t think by his frame, he didn’t look at all like a beater. Which is probably why he was made to be keeper Charles thought to himself, no one need to have any sort of strength in that position. When Mike mentioned how he wasn’t good with teams outside of New Zealand Charles rolled his eyes. “Strange, seeing as the Moutohora Macaws are the only team in New Zealand you mustn’t know Quidditch at all Michael.” he said with a scoff. “And Bella don’t pretend you don’t know them. Remember, we’re the ones who beat the Holyhead Harpies last season, kicking them out of the spot for the finals.” he added as Bella tried to stick up for her ‘roommate.’ “So yes to answer your question, we are very good. The top team in Oz.” he added proudly. Taking a sip of his drink he continued to eat as he waited for Mike to stop eating and react some way and Bella for that matter, he loved people’s reactions when he proved them wrong somehow or just made them seem stupid and silly. When Mike answered his question, saying he was an Auror, Charles nodded his head. It seemed to be a pretty respectable job but Charles saw it as people showing off, being an Auror just seemed to say ‘Hey look at me, I’m a good guy and does good stuff, worship me’ which kinda sicking Charles to be brutally honest, but for the sake of tonight he wasn’t going to voice his opinion..too much. “Oh, still a trainee then? Nice job. Although aren’t you worried?” he asked, taking a break. “I mean, it’s a nice job yeah but it’s dangerous too isn’t it? What if you got married and had a family in the future and Merlin forbid something were to happen to you, as things so often do happen to Aurors. What about your family? How would they go on without you?” he asked, knowing it was a completely extreme case for things to happen to Aurors but things did happen, and if he and Bella were more than just roommates as he suspected then it should add some fun to the night.

Charles ate some more as Mike turned the conversation to his godfather. He heard his name uttered once more and rolled his eyes. Merlin this guy doesn’t know when to shut up. Yes, make conversation at dinner but we’re trying to eat. he thought to himself before replying to him. “I’m 19, 20 in matter of days.” he added, not really knowing what age Mike was and not really caring. Sighing he answered his next question. “No, not Hogwarts, my parents wouldn’t dare have me schooled anywhere but Durmstrang. It is one of the best schools, aren’t I right Charles?” he said with a small laugh, directed to his godfather, having gone to Durmstrang himself he would appreciate what he was saying.