eglantine bulstrode has her thorns (poisons) wrote in raveled, @ 2017-01-11 14:32:00 |
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Tina's brothers had been sent to watch after her for a bit during this afternoon's garden party, either to keep them from doing something that shouldn't or to keep her from doing something she shouldn't, possibly some combination of the two. Most likely she was meant not to be weeding anything; the presence of guests didn't impede the presence of other unwanted things in the gardens. But she had her party robes on, so she was meant to stay off her knees and on her feet, or at worst seated on one of the benches on the paths. “The Fawley’s haven’t found you out yet?” Lewis teased as he offered his brother a cigarette from his case as they monitored their young sister in the garden. “Their daughter is marrying me, not you, remember?” Neal offered at a dry cautious humour as he took the cigarette. A short chuckle left the elder Bulstrode, completely unaffected by the jab. Neal seemed to monitor the response with a stitch in his brow. Ignoring the wedding was par for the course and Tina had learnt to turn her attention elsewhere when her brothers or, worse, her mother, started in on her subject. But polite conversation was a skill she was meant to cultivate, so she decided to practise on Lewis and Neal. "I'll be packing for Hogwarts soon," she said, changing the subject, which had grown stale to her mind. "What things that aren't on the list do you think I should ask to bring with me?" The two older men were in the process of lighting their cigarettes when Eglantine’s question was offered. 25 year old Neal grinned through the light of his fag and inhaled deeply exchanging a glance to Lewis. “Did you pick up a smuggling device?” Lewis asked, “Something you can take with you to smuggle in contraband?” Tina liked that Lewis treated her as an adult. "Like what? I mean I can get something to hide things with, but if it's something I'm meant to do magically, I'll need to wait until I have a wand, unless someone else does it for me." Which was quite possibly the opening of a negotiation with Lewis, precisely because he treated her as an adult. “You’re right, you can’t just buy anything,” Lewis nodded. “You’ll need something unique and unassuming… feminine and believable.” He took a drag from his cigarette and then crossed his arms in thought for a moment. “You shouldn’t encourage him,” Neal spoke to the eleven year old, pointing at their sibling, “He’ll get you expelled before you even arrive.” “That only happened once,” Lewis corrected, “And Carmichael eventually got let back in.” “Yeah, with his entire second year dedicated to detentions.” Lewis chuckled at the memory. The former Head Boy in the family continued, “Egg, don’t ever make a deal with Lewis that involves an unbreakable vow. It’s not worth it.” “It’s worth it for me,” the eldest Bulstrode shrugged, but offered a playful wink to his sister. "There's nothing worth an Unbreakable Vow that can't wait until term break," Tina opined firmly by way of splitting the difference. She might choose to ignore the undercurrents between Lewis and Neal, but she was not unaware of them. For all that she was used to getting what she wanted from their parents by twisting her father round her finger, her brothers, older and inclined to indulge her as they might be, required subtler tactics. "Or until I break free for the wedding. You'd think someone would have remembered that I'm meant to be at Hogwarts this year. I hope I'll get permission to attend." It was still an open question. On the one hand, for all that she was bored by all the back and forth and found Beatrice a little silly, Tina very much wanted to see Neal safely married. On the other hand, she knew leaving would mark her out among her peers. "And if I don't, Lewis, you'll just have to send me things because Neal will undoubtedly be too busy." She grinned at Neal to cut the sting of the nominal stab at his tender sensibilities. Neal narrowed his eyes in a mock sense of disapproval for being teased, but his grin gave him away. “You’ll be at the wedding. Both of you. No matter how much you try to get out of it. I’m not above petrifying the pair of you in order to guarantee attendance.” Lewis ignored his younger brother’s attempt to intimidate them and nodded at their sister, “I’ll send you as much as you like.” A nod of approval for breaking the rules present. "Thank you, Lewis. And if you want me there that badly, Neal, it's up to you to get our parents to speak to Headmaster Dumbledore. He'll ultimately decide whether to grant me leave or not." This was Tina's way of splitting the difference again, without appearing to do so. They were both her brother, but they were both each other's brother as well, and she was more than aware how little that could mean with them. “Yeah,” Lewis backhanded Neal’s chest in a playful taunt, “You make sure Headmaster Dumbledore does you another favour, hm?” In that same moment Beatrice Fawley called her fiance from the house. The three siblings glanced in her direction before returning to their own circle. “I will,” Neal answered Lewis’ jest, despite the brief interruption. He took one last drag from his cigarette instead. Tossing the butt of it to the ground he stomped out the heat. “You’re both coming, that’s the last time I’ll say it,” he pointed between the two as he moved back toward the house. “No excuses.” “Yeah, yeah,” Lewis waved his hand. Turning his attention to Tina the older man grinned. “We’ll show up with all our nasty contraband and debauchery. Right, kid?” Tina winked at Lewis. Her smile conveyed the likeness between them more clearly than the unfortunate Bulstrode nose. "Even if the contraband has to be me." |