five to neverland & beyond

✧

        THE ODDITIES OF MADDOX DEAN-VALANCE INCLUDED HER INABILITY TO HAVE SUNKISSED SKIN. Well, perhaps not an oddity, quite common for a redheaded girl like herself, and it's not like Scotland gave her many opportunities to tan in the sun. Still, when Zenia insisted that they take advantage of the good weather and lay out in the courtyard before their next classes, she scrunched up her face but relented at the pleading look on her friend's face.

         Besides, they hadn't seen each other in months, what with Zenia's parents barely tolerating Maddox' existence. Still, she didn't dwell on that, but accepted her fate as she sat on the cobblestone ground and listened to Zenia rattle on about the history of the prisoning system. There was only so much she could tolerate before her mind wandered off to neverland.

         Neverland, which includes many thoughts of new designs for her sketchbook or paintings for her art. Absolutely her favorite, and absolutely magical. Seeing her designs come to life on the canvas, butterflies fluttering around, or portraits snarking back. Well, maybe not the portraits. They always had an attitude, and she was still peeved that they were going to rattle her out to Filch if she hadn't gotten out of there quick enough.

         But neverland also included her father. Marek. A name – she finally had a name! After fourteen (almost fifteen) years of waiting, she had the name of the father who assisted in her existence. And she couldn't help but wonder what he looked like, or why Elena Nelson's journal warned her against him. Marek, the man out of place. Marek, the man her mother fell in love with. Marek, the man who didn't raise her and Elena no longer loved.

         With every answer she received, more questions popped up. It was like she couldn't win.

         "Maddox!" Zenia tousled her lightly, snapping her out of neverland and back to reality. The girl frowned. "You zoned out on me."

         "I did not," Maddox lied with an eye roll to accompany.

         Zenia leveled her a look. "Oh yeah? Then what did I just say?"

         She sucked in a breath, searching her mind for an answer before releasing it. "Dammit, I don't know."

         "Am I really that boring?" Zenia pouted.

         "Not at all," she was quick to shake her head, "I've just – well, I've got a lot on my mind."

         "Like what?"

         Well. What, exactly, was something she hadn't really told Zenia yet. Not because she didn't trust her friend, no, nothing like that. It was just, well, telling her would mean fessing up that she snooped through her parents' closet. Fessing up meant opening up to Zenia's judgement if Marek wasn't all that of a wizard.

         Fletcher was one thing; Fletcher was her bestest friend for the longest time. They grew up together, and while he might not know everything about her (ie: her being magical), he never pretty much everything else. And he knew how much Elena Nelson and Marek meant to her in ways that her family didn't. Zenia always partnered with Foster, in that am I not enough of a family for you type of guilt.

         Fletcher disapproved but supported her, always. Zenia disapproved and frowned forever, guiding her towards a different path until she relented.

         "Like classes," she lied again, and hated herself for doing it. But Marek was hers for now, no one else's. Except Fletcher's. But Fletcher was far, far away and unfortunately muggle, so him knowing didn't matter much at Hogwarts. "It is the start of the school year."

         "Yeah, I guess, but if I think about the fact that I have Snape for a double Potions period any more than I already have, I think I might have an aneurism."

         "Oh, Snape. Yeah, think I would too. Best of luck, and remember to practice your silent hexes because you might need them."

         Zenia flicked her. "I am not going to hex one of my professors!"

         "Why? He deserves it," Maddox defended her.

         "I'm not going to get detention."

         "Eh, it's not that bad."

         "To you, yeah. To my mother, it's the end of the world."

         "Well, that seems like a you problem. Maybe you can, I don't know, find new parents?" Zenia flicked her again. She yelped. "Ow! You have got to stop doing that!"

         "Why? You deserved it," Zenia snarked, repeating her early words back to her.

         Her eyes widened and she leaned back. "Now that's low."

         "Not low. Just meeting you at your level," Zenia sweetly smiled back. She rolled her eyes.

         Zenia, the angel, acting like the devil. Merlin, she really was a bad influence. She grinned at that thought.

         "Oi, Mads!" she looked over, Foster and his friends coming over. He raised an eyebrow at her. "I hope you're not skipping during the first week of classes."

         She gasped dramatically. "How dare you think so low of me! I'll have you know, Zenia and I have a free period and we are enjoying the sunlight."

         Foster snorted. "Yeah, right. You hate being outside. Mum tried to get you to go on a walk with her over summer and you hissed at the thought of going out."

         "Lies and slander," she dismissed the accusations, turning up her nose at him.

         "Yeah, yeah," he shook his head, "Wouldn't want ma to know you're ditching already."

         "Well, ma will know nothing, because it isn't true. I am a wonderful student who always attends my classes."

         Zenia and Foster laughed together. "Right, right. What do you call that time you skipped McGonagall because your hair wasn't cooperating then?" Zenia teased.

         "An acceptable excuse – and an outlier."

         "Or the time you ditched me in Sprout's because you didn't feel like potting plants that day?"

         "Again, an acceptable excuses."

         "Then you must have a list of thousand acceptable excuses for the amount you've skipped," Zenia grinned.

         Maddox glared at the two. "Ganging up on me isn't nice."

         "Oh, I'm so sorry, Mads, please forgive me," Foster sarcastically drawled out of the words, hand on his hand to plead further. She threw her quill at him. He laughed.

         "Go on, Foster. I'm done with you."

         "You always are."

         "I'll hex you. Turn your hair bright yellow for weeks if you don't get on with it," she threatened.

         "I'm so scared," he teased but did walk away. She watched him go with hooded eyes.

         "I swear, I'm going to kill that kid one day."

         "You love him."

         "Love has nothing to do with this," she raised her finger, "I love him, yes, but he's a pain in my arse and it will come back to bite him one day."

         "You would never hex him," Zenia shook her head.

         "That's what you think. And him. But just you wait, I will turn that boy into a pig if it means he'll actually listen to me. You know, it is so disrespectful not to listen to your elders, and he just doesn't understand that."

         "You'll have to forgive him. He is thirteen."

         Maddox made a gagging noise. "Don't remind that. That's disgusting. My little brother growing up, I hate it."

         "You're going to be fifteen soon."

         She groaned. "Really don't remind me of that. I'm growing up too quickly."

         Zenia laughed. "You're fine. I'm fifteen already."

         "Elderly. Geriatric."

         "Oh, shush, you," Zenia pushed her lightly.

         The clock tower chimed. "Shit," she frowned, "Looks like it's time to get to class."

         "Dreadful," Zenia agreed, pushing herself up with a groan then holding out her hands for Maddox, "Alright, come on, get up."

         Maddox took her hands, lifting herself up with a spring. Then, she crotched down to get her things together before the two of them started off from the courtyard. They followed a gaggle of others, crossing paths with others, but she didn't take note of anything until Cedric Diggory smiled and stopped.

         "Maddox, hey," he greeted, prompting her and Zenia to stop as well.

         "Cedric," she smiled, eyes flickering to his friend. Samuel Duval. She frowned slightly before turning back to Cedric. She wasn't aware they were friends.

         "I just wanted to say thank you again for the save. Don't know what I would've done if I got detention on my first night back."

         She shrugged. "It's not a problem. Would've been my fault if you had."

         He shook his head. "I was out, too."

         "Yeah, walking," she smirked, laughing a little because how silly was that? Cedric Diggory taking a walk around Hogwarts past curfew in the dark. Feels silly, anyway. "So rebellious."

         "I might not be a master spray paint artist, but I can break a few rules."

         She laughed. Samuel rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you know this one – Mr. Bad Guy. Breaks all the rules," he teased and her laugh got louder.

         "Oh, shove off," Cedric pushed him. "What class are you two headed to?"

         "I'm going to Ghoul Studies but Zenia's got Potions," she answered for them both, pointedly avoiding Zenia's eyes on her.

         "Ah, Ghoul Studies. I took it last year, horrible class. So boring. How'd you end up with it?"

         "Unfortunately, it was the only elective that lined up with my schedule, so I did what I had to."

         "Best of luck to you then. And if you ever need any help, I'm here."

         She looked him up and down. "I'll see how my first class goes then back to you."

         "You do that," he smiled brightly, "Well, we gotta get going. Have a good day, guys!"

         They waved goodbye and she moved on, yelping when Zenia slapped her arm. "Since when do you know Cedric Diggory? Since when does Cedric Diggory talk to us?"

         "You're making him out to be a celebrity or something, Zenia, it's not a big deal."

         "Not a big deal? Not a big deal? Cedric Diggory is everyone's number one. You know the girls line up just waiting for him to ask them out or even give them the time of day, and here you are – just talking to him, like it's nothing!" Zenia incredulously continued.

         "Because it is nothing. All I did was nab him to keep him out of trouble. It doesn't mean anything. I did him a favor and now he's being nice to me."

         Zenia leveled a look at her. "He offered to help you study if you need. That's not just being nice."

         "You're overreacting."

         "I think you're under reacting. You know, to another girl, this would be the biggest thing to ever happen to them."

         "And that's sad. He's just a guy. And he was just being nice. Now I've got to get to class, and so do you, so I'll you at dinner?"

         Zenia pursed her lips, wanting to argue more but resolved to not push it. "See you at dinner."

         "Good luck with Snape."

         "Will do."

✧

         WITH EVERY BIT of knowledge she gained about Marek, there were still a million other things she didn't know. He worked for the government, in a high position that his father once held. He had a sister, but his parents were dead. He loved the color blue but he always told people his favorite color was red. Yet, he didn't speak of where he went to school, or what he did at his job. He clutched his left arm like he was scared of her touching it, or being anywhere near it.

         Every puzzle piece she collected connected to nothing with thousands still missing from her clutches. But that just made her like him more.

         He was like a code she had to decipher, and she waited for every piece of information he gave her like a dog waiting for a treat. When he slipped up and told her something, she memorized it immediately, adding it to the catalogue of who Marek was.

         And despite the weeks that had passed of them trading conversation in the coffee shop, she had yet to learn his last name. He knew hers. She didn't hide who she was, openly telling him everything about her life and her mother's declining health. But while he knew her name of Elena Nelson, she only had Marek to work with. And while it was uncommon, it wasn't enough to look him up.

         Not that she would. But, still. The point stood.

         "Do you live around here or something?" she asked before taking a sip of her tea.

         "What?" he asked.

         "Do you live around here?"

         "Why do you think that?"

         "Because you're always here. I mean, you know I'm here because the hospital is nearby, but you're always here. And I know you don't work around here, so that means you've gotta live nearby."

         Marek stared at her. Studying her, almost. Calculating her features with upturned lips, assessing her as if she was a maths equation. "No," he stated carefully after a few moments, "I don't live around here."

         "Then why do you come so often? It must be out of your way, would be so much more convenient to find a shop closer to you."

         "But they wouldn't have you."

         She blinked. "What?" she laughed, because the thought of anyone – least of all Marek – frequenting a place just to see her was ridiculous.

         "You're so fascinating, and I don't think you realize. Every time I talk to you, I learn something new about the world, and it's utterly fascinating."

         She blushed. "Oh."

✧

         UNFORTUNATELY, CEDRIC WAS right: Ghoul Studies was dreadfully boring and she wanted to hit herself in the head with her textbook the entire time. Professor Binns droned on and on, tirelessly and in a monotone, stating nothing interesting as her head tried to wander off to neverland. But even that didn't work enough, no inspiration as every bit of life was sucked out of her in that classroom. And it was only the first day.

         Merlin, how was she going to survive that class?

         "So what I'm hearing is that Ghoul Studies is your favorite class that you've ever had the pleasure of taking at Hogwarts?" Zenia finished off.

         Maddox blinked. "I thought about using the Killing Curse on myself at least twice."

         "Damn," Zenia frowned, "Maybe don't do that? Because if you did, then I would have to send out applications for a new best friend that then interview people for the position and honestly it would just take too long. Best to just keep you around."

         "Thanks," Maddox deadpanned, but still her lips turned upwards at her friend. "How was Snape."

         "Himself. But, he only insulted me once during class which is two less than his usual."

         "Oh, so he's getting softer with old age."

         "Yes, he must. I think there's still time for him to go all Ebenezer Scrouge on my again, though. It was only the first class."

         "Don't be such a Debbie Downer."

         "Says the girl who admitted to wanting to use the Killing Curse."

         "Touché."

         Zenia winked at her. Loud laughter caught their attention down the long table and Zenia let out a sigh when she saw that it was Fred and George. "He's so cute," she lamented.

         "So ask him out," Maddox suggested.

         "I can't just do that!"

         "Why not?"

         "It's too blunt. And what if he says no?"

         "Zenia, I promise you that he's as gone for you as you are for him. You just can't see it, but Fred and I totally do."

         "Well, what if I want him to ask me out?"

         "Tell him."

         Zenia grimaced. "That's not a good suggestion either."

         "It's all I've got. If you want George to ask you out, tell him you fancy him and say you should ask me to Hogsmeade or something like that."

         "But that's terrifying."

         "But it will get you the results you want."

         She groaned. "I don't know. Are you sure he likes me?"

         "Absolutely. 100% positive, actually," Maddox said before leaning in, "You're just overthinking it. And, if you really want, you can wait for a while, send out some feelers and see how he responds. If it's positive, then be blunt."

         "Yeah," Zenia nodded, "I guess."

         "You got this," Maddox frowned. Operation Get Zenia and George Together was totally going to work.