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Jessi McKimmon ([info]upon_my_return) wrote in [info]around_again,
@ 2009-03-26 19:27:00

Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Entry tags:1996 08, @private residence, alice longbottom, frank longbottom

August 26, 1996 - Home, Sweet Home
Who: Alice, Frank
Where: the Longbottom residence
When: August 26, 1996, afternoon
Rating: FtB

Status: Closed, completed
Summary: Frank and Alice begin to pick up the pieces of their life with discussions of what their plans are for the future. A talk with Dumbledore and a house of their own are high on the list.



It had been a whirlwind of days. They'd had to both get new wands, robes, clothes, everything. What they did still have and still fit was fifteen years out of style - though Alice clung tenaciously to some of her favorite outfits.

There'd been two separate (but small) articles in the Prophet about their recovery, but Alice was glad it wasn't highly publicized. The last thing they needed was Bellatrix and her friends coming back to finish what they'd started. It wasn't completely outside the realm of possibility, though she didn't think they'd be a priority. Not now. Not when both Harry and Voldemort's locations were known.

Humming to herself, Alice moved easily around the kitchen to make lunch. She supposed at some point - soon - they should figure out how to go about with things. She was all set to brush up on her auror training and get back into the thick of things - there was still a war going on, after all - but she supposed that should be a decision they made together. She could do other things, after all.


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[info]worldenough
2009-03-26 10:00 pm UTC (link)
There were still moments, even after a few days, when Frank would catch a glimpse of his own reflection and not quite recognize himself. It was an odd sensation, having aged and not realized it. He didn't seem to have the same problem with Alice or even Neville, but Frank tried not to let it bother him too much. This was him now, he'd have to get used to it sooner or later.

He found Alice in the kitchen and stopped in the doorway, reluctant to interrupt her. The years had certainly been kind to his wife (at least, in his altogether biased opinion), and he still had to smile just at knowing he had her back. Walking up behind her, he pressed a gentle kiss just to her cheek. "Hello, love."

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-26 10:16 pm UTC (link)
She smiled widely at her husband, eyes lighting up as they so often did when they were around each other. Simply the fact that she could recognize her family, knew who they were, was an amazing fact. "Well, hello yourself Mr. Longbottom," she murmured to him before she tilted her head to kiss his lips softly.

This, too, was still novel. It had been ages since they'd had a chance to simply be close to one another - two people loving each other rather than two strangers simply sharing a room.

Drawing her head back slightly, she simply regarded him before lifting a hand to caress his face softly.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-26 10:24 pm UTC (link)
Frank wasn't sure how he could have ever gone as long as he had without knowing Alice- but now that he had her back, he was going to do everything in his power to make sure he never lost her again.

His eyes closed as she caressed his cheek, and after a moment he turned his head to kiss her palm. He was relieved at how easily they'd fallen back into their comfortable patterns with one another. "I've interrupted you, haven't I?" he asked, after a moment- though he didn't move away from her just yet.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-26 10:41 pm UTC (link)
"Mmm," she attempted to look thoughtful for a moment before she shook her head. "No," she decided. "I was making lunch, but I think you take a bit of precedence over food just now." Her arms snaked lightly over his shoulders as she pressed against him, resting her forehead against his as she peered into his eyes.

"Though if you were feeling up to it, I certainly wouldn't mind a bit of help?"

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-26 10:51 pm UTC (link)
"I'm glad I rank quite so highly," Frank replied, laughing gently before hugging Alice close again, happy enough to just breathe in the scent of her hair and the enjoy the comfort of her closeness for a moment.

He stepped away, reluctantly, reaching for one of her hands and squeezing faintly. "I'd love to help," Frank replied, belatedly, stepping back and offering an attempt at a gallant bow.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-26 11:08 pm UTC (link)
She squeezed his hand in return before she drew him closer to her again. Sometimes, a lot, lately, she needed to just be near him. To hold him, to feel him. To make sure he still knew her, to be sure he was real. She wondered when she'd stop being afraid she'd lose him - or Neville - and she decided that was a fear that wouldn't go away any time soon.

"We should talk," she murmured against his mouth before she claimed his lips again. "About what we want to do. There's a new Order ... did you want to look into that?"

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-26 11:15 pm UTC (link)
Frank really wasn't complaining about Alice needing (or even just wanting) to be close- he took comfort in her, one of the few familiar things that he could still cling to. "We should," he agreed, unable to resist one more kiss, just gently. "Yes, I do," Frank added. "I- I'd like to go back to the Ministry, of course- even if they confine me to a desk job," though he winced at the idea. "But I'm not sure what... state the Ministry's in, and the Order- well, they'll be with us, now as they ever were." He hoped.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-26 11:42 pm UTC (link)
"I don't ..." she hesitated. "If what the Prophet's been going on about is even close to the truth, I don't think the Ministry's really the place. Not for us. I think we should ... at least get in touch with Dumbledore, and ... see if we can help."

She flicked her eyes toward the door before she moved away from Frank - but only long enough to tend to lunch so it wouldn't burn. Setting the pan of soup aside, she turned back to him. "We do still want to, don't we?"

She knew she was afraid, a little, but she also knew she wasn't going to let that stop her. She wouldn't let the Death Eaters best her. Not if she could help it.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 06:16 am UTC (link)
"I still want to help, of course," he replied, quickly, taking a deep breath as he considered. "I just- I don't know, Al. You know how much I loved being an Auror- that was my dream for years, and one I worked hard at getting." Well, they both had, hadn't they? "And maybe it is naive, but I don't quite want to give up on that yet- I can't imagine that the Ministry's so far gone that even the Aurors are all corrupted..." He frowned, but continued, "Dumbledore is probably the place to start, though, you're right."

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 08:51 am UTC (link)
She ran her hands over his shoulders, gazing into his eyes before she cradled his face between her hands. "I know," she murmured before she leaned in to kiss the tip of his nose.

"Even if all the aurors are fine, you have to wonder about the people above them. The people really making the wheels turn. I just don't want to get caught ... in a bad place."

She slipped her arms around him to rest her head on his shoulder, her body pressing lightly against his. She thought that talking to Albus was a place to start; he'd likely have some ideas for them. Some places to start, anyway, or a better picture of how things were just now.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 09:05 am UTC (link)
"I don't want that, either," Frank assured her, his voice quiet. He was reluctant to give up on the Aurors- they were one of things he'd been able to count on, and to take real pride in, in his previous years. And maybe that had changed, but (foolishly optimistic or not) Frank didn't want to jump to that conclusion just yet.

"We can send him a letter today- Dumbledore, I mean," he offered, after a moment. "I'm sure he's heard about us by now- he's always had ears everywhere, and I doubt that's changed." He couldn't help but smile a bit.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 09:14 am UTC (link)
She smiled softly. "Oh, I think a fair few people have heard about us by now," she agreed as she rubbed his back before she drew away so they could actually have lunch.

She was, she realized, going to miss Neville when he went back to school. It hardly seemed fair that they only had the week with him ... but they'd have owls and holidays and then summer again. And they'd likely be busy as well. They needed jobs; they couldn't well live off Augusta's charity forever.

Ladling the soup into bowls and setting the sandwiches on a plate, she carried them to the kitchen table, her mind whirling. All she'd ever done was be an auror, so it stood to reason she'd go right back to it. Maybe things would be all right there if they just ... tried to keep under the radar, as it were.

Wearing her 'I'm thinking very hard' face, Alice settled down at the table.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 09:32 am UTC (link)
Frank brought their drinks over and sat down at the table, trying some of the soup and just thinking for a moment. "I don't know quite where to start," he admitted, after a moment. "Neville, of course. He- he's the most important of all of this. I- we've only got a week left, Al, and I don't know if I'm going to be able to let him go." Maybe that was silly or over-sentimental, but at least he was honest?

"And- well, I want to have a place of our own, too. Not that I don't appreciate everything my mum has done for us- especially raising Neville- but... well, it's not exactly ideal, yeah?" To say the least.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 10:14 am UTC (link)
"I know," she murmured. "I don't want to see him go off, either. Not when we've just ... now that we can really recognize him, and know him." But his education was important, and there'd be time after to catch up on everything they'd missed.

"But it does give us an excuse to spoil him silly," she mused with a wicked gleam in her eyes. "Care packages at least once a week," she continued with a grin.

To his last point, she nodded emphatically. "Yes. It's ... lovely here, and I appreciate her doing this for us, but... we do need our own place." Their own place, to restart their own lives.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 10:44 am UTC (link)
"He'll be safe at Hogwarts, though," Frank offered- and it was some small bit of consolation, at least. He smiled at the thought of spoiling him, nodding. "Care packages and- well, I'd say there are Hogsmeade weekends, too, but I'm sure seeing his parents is the last thing any kid would want on a day off from school." He shook his head.

"Hopefully sooner rather than later. I- well, it's like you said. This-" he gestured around, "-is temporary, for us. I don't want to be under my mum's care any more than I wanted to be with the Healers at St Mungo's." Stubborn, perhaps, but with good reason. "We'll find a place of our own, Al, I promise- and then when Neville's back for the holidays, we'll all be together there. A proper family, finally."

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 10:52 am UTC (link)
"Most kids, perhaps. I somehow think if we bumped into him in Hogsmeade, he wouldn't be terribly put out." And that, actually, seemed like a really good idea. Maybe she'd look into that. Find out when the trips were and surprise Neville by being there. Maybe they could even meet some of his friends. See how Lily's boy was doing.

That brought a slight pang of sorrow to her; they really hadn't had that much time to mourn Lily and James' passing before they'd been set upon by Death Eaters ... but at least Harry seemed to be doing well, by all reports.

She did smile to Frank at his desire to be out of his mother's house, but she couldn't blame him. She'd feel the same if they were under her mother's care. "A proper family," she echoed.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 11:16 am UTC (link)
Frank reached a hand over to grasp Alice's hand, gently. "I promised you we'd have one, all those years ago," he said, smiling faintly at the memory. "I suppose it's taken a bit to get around to it, but I intend to make good on the promise."

He offered a faint smile. "And Neville- well, I think he'll help us with that. I mean- he seems happy to have us back, at least. And I don't think he'll want to stay here, not if we can offer him somewhere else." He paused a moment, pulling his hand back. "I want to prove to him that I can be a proper da, too, since I haven't been one before." When Neville was a baby, perhaps, though he wondered what that counted for, now.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 11:40 am UTC (link)
"Frank," Alice chastised lightly. "It wasn't your fault, what happened. To both of us. You were a proper father while you were well," she continued. "And of course he's happy to have us back."

Speaking of, she was rather surprised he wasn't here with them just now, but maybe he was simply trying to give them alone time together. Which was sweet, if that was the case.

"But no, I can't imagine he'd prefer living here to living with us." She liked Augusta well enough, but she knew what a pill the woman could be. And to think of her poor son growing up with that.

But that would change, now. She and Frank would take care of him.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 11:56 am UTC (link)
"Sorry," Frank's cheeks flushed- he knew he shouldn't blame himself, but he couldn't help it, sometimes. There had to have been something more he should have done- even if he'd still been taken down, he should have been able to save Alice--

No, he couldn't think like that. There was no changing the past, and he just had to be glad for the time he'd been given, now.

"We'll be alright, you know," he offered, finally, with a confidence that nearly surprised him. "It's daunting and overwhelming but- me and you, Alice, we can do anything." At least if the last week was any indication, that seemed true enough.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 12:56 pm UTC (link)
"I never had any doubt about that," she assured her husband with a smile. "We can do anything, together."

Devoting her attention briefly to her food, she started to eat before it got cold.

Them, together, with their son ... she didn't think there was a force in this world or the next that could stop them. Not even Lord Voldemort and all his followers.

"So," she began after a slight pause. "What was on the agenda for today?"

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 01:04 pm UTC (link)
"Today?" Frank repeated, glancing up from where he had been eating (having remembered his soup after noticing Alice eat, too). "Well, we can send a letter to Dumbledore, I think- and it's probably better that we wait to see what he says before throwing our names into the mix at the Ministry. It's only been a few days, we don't need to save the world quite yet." He gave a playful wink. "Other than that, I'm admittedly not quite sure. I'd like to start looking for a place to move, but I'm not sure that's a feasible option quite yet. There's still money in our Gringotts account," thankfully, "but- well, I'd say we shouldn't be rash, but then where's the fun in that?"

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 01:40 pm UTC (link)
"Well, there's no harm in looking for a place. Getting some papers or something and just ... seeing what's out there. On the market. Maybe we can find a nice quiet place out toward Hogsmeade," she suggested.

Though she had to admit at least part of that desire had to do with being that much closer to Neville. And in proximity to Hogwarts.

"And honestly, I wouldn't even dream of going to the Ministry before speaking with Albus." Because if it turned out that the Ministry was exactly the wrong place to go, she'd want to know before she got there.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 01:59 pm UTC (link)
"Definitely somewhere in the country," Frank agreed, "and Hogsmeade would be nice. I think I've had enough of the city sort of business- at least, I know I don't want to live here." He might have been able to stomach it when he was younger, but now Frank much preferred the idea of a quiet place, somewhere away from most everything else.

"We won't make any decisions- at least, ones about our jobs and such- until we talk to Dumbledore. I trust him with my life, and he'll be able to steer us onto the correct path." Because the Prophet certainly wasn't reliable.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 03:15 pm UTC (link)
Alice nodded, and since it seemed like that plan was settled, she smiled. So they'd browse about for a place to live, near Hogsmeade. They'd talk to Dumbledore, they'd figure out what to do with their lives, and then they'd go about living that life.

Pleased, she carried her empty bowl to the sink before she turned to lean against the counter.

"Do you ever wonder if this is just ... temporary?" It was an awful thought, but one she'd found herself wondering a time or two. If they were only being granted a slight reprieve for reasons she couldn't fathom. She doubted it, and she hoped not, but she wondered all the same.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 03:21 pm UTC (link)
He brought his empty dishes to the sink, pausing there just a moment to consider Alice's question. It wasn't something he really wanted to consider, though Frank understood why the idea would worry Alice.

"No," he said, finally, turning to face her. "It- the world may be many things, Alice, but I- I can't believe it's that cruel." Of course, the argument could be made that if the world wasn't so cruel, they wouldn't have been taken away in the first place. "It's- the Healers were just as baffled by our recovery as we seem to be, but- well, maybe we aren't the only ones!" Then again, a mass miracle might be even more strange than it just being the two of them.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 03:40 pm UTC (link)
"Perhaps not," she agreed. She hadn't read the Prophet yet today; maybe there'd been another recovery or something. But even if - or especially if - they weren't the only ones, what did it mean?

Why them? Why now? What next?

"It's just so baffling, that ... after all this time we should just suddenly ... and together ..."

She ducked her head a little before she shrugged sheepishly. "I guess I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth." A wry grin tugged her lips before she held out her arms for him, wanting him close to her again.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-27 03:53 pm UTC (link)
Frank was all too happy to move closer, his arms around Alice's waist, holding her in a gentle embrace. "I think it's romantic," he admitted, knowing it might sound silly for him to say as much. "That we woke up together- or near enough to it, at least. It shows we're not meant to be apart, no matter what state we're in." Cheesy and idealistic, yes, but a nice thought none the less. "That or I just wanted to be sure you didn't go off and find some new younger bloke to replace me," he added, teasingly.

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-27 06:31 pm UTC (link)
Alice laughed softly before she dipped her chin in to nuzzle at his throat softly. "I would have waited for you, Frank. I would have gone to you every day and waited until you could join me. And if you never did, then I never would have sought anyone else."

The words may have sounded fanciful, idealistic, the stuff of fairy-tales, but they were true for her. She would have gone to his side every day, even if only for a few moments at a time, to simply be with him and wait for his return.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-28 12:24 am UTC (link)
"I know you would have," he replied, his voice quiet as he pressed a gentle kiss just to her hair. Anyone else might have cast doubt on such unquestioned loyalty or love, but to Frank it came natural- at least where Alice was concerned. But then again, he'd been in love with her since they were teenagers- most of his lifetime (even if he didn't remember all of it, now). "I like it much better this way, though," he added, an obvious statement or not. "I still need you around, very much."

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-28 12:46 am UTC (link)
"Mmm, I like it better this way, too," she agreed as she tightened her arms around him. She was very inclined to see about bringing this to the bedroom; she thought they had a lot of time to make up for. Still, despite the fact they were both adults, she always felt vaguely ... awkward doing that in his mother's house.

Not that it had stopped them at night, but during the day ... She giggled faintly at herself before she kissed a soft trail along his jaw toward his ear, nipping softly at the lobe. "If we don't find something else to do today," she murmured against his ear, "I think I'm going to drag you to the bedroom for a ... nap."

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-28 06:19 pm UTC (link)
Frank would hardly argue about making up time with Alice, especially this way- though the idea of sneaking around with his mum there left him... well, especially eager to move out, to say the least.

He turned his head to kiss Alice again, letting it linger a moment before pulling back just barely and offering a playful smile. "That certainly sounds better than anything else I might have planned," he admitted. "I've missed... napping, with you."

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[info]upon_my_return
2009-03-28 07:44 pm UTC (link)
"Then let's go have a nap," she murmured to him. Her lips pressed softly along his jaw to his throat before she drew away slowly, her hands sliding down his arms to catch his hands.

Backing up slowly, an impish grin curving her lips, she started to lead him out of the kitchen.

Yes, she wanted to spend time with her son, too, but right now, she thought that she and Frank could do with a bit of time to themselves. Maybe they'd see if Neville wanted to do something after dinner. Chat, or play a board game, or maybe go out for a walk.

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[info]worldenough
2009-03-28 08:57 pm UTC (link)
As awful as it might have sounded, when Alice looked at him like that, Neville was about the furthest thing from Frank's mind. He grinned- probably looking rather goofy and not nearly as alluring or playful as his wife did- but followed along all the same.

Reaching their bedroom (or, at least, the guest room where they'd been staying), Frank glanced none too subtly over his shoulder and, not seeing anyone there to stop them (not that he'd have let them), he closed the door firmly behind them.

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