&marlene.001 - Blog Posts
FIN.
alicelxngbottom:
Alice laughed, nodding in agreement with Marlene’s sentiment. These parties, however lavish and grand, were nothing short of dull. Alice had hated them as a child; though her parents didn’t attend many of the parties all that often, they were careful not to burn too many bridges with the rest of the Rosiers, so she had been subjected to her fair share of boring parties. Luckily for her, Marlene had often been there to liven them up, so it felt full circle that she was here tonight, even if she wasn’t really supposed to be.
Alice shrugged. “He tries to get back at least once every couple of weeks, but it’s usually only for a few hours. I guess it’s taking longer than expected.” She couldn’t really say more, not even to Marlene, because it was Auror business and not anything to do with the Order, so she gave an apologetic smile for her vague response. “Moody promised he’d be back in time for the birth, though, so fingers crossed I don’t go too early.”
Alice’s smile softened at Marlene’s words. “Thanks, Mar, but I’ll be okay. I have the perfect alibi since I was actually invited. I would have come even if we hadn’t come up with this insane plan.” She shook her head, making it clear that she hadn’t been one of the ones on board with this. It seemed more risky than it was worth. “Being able to be here and help if someone gets into trouble is far less anxiety-provoking than sitting at home wondering what’s going on.”
*
“That’s shitty, but at least he’ll be back for the birth. Can’t imagine him missing that. You must be getting excited though! Or nervous? Or both? I can’t imagine pushing something the size of a small watermelon out of my vagina”, Marlene crossed her eyes, “Sorry, that’s probably not helpful.” She was excited to meet the baby once it was born, she knew the little child was going to be so loved. It was bizarre to her that anyone would decide to have a family in the middle of a war, but then again, you never knew what was going to happen each day, so what was the use of putting things off if you really wanted them?
“That’s surprising”, she laughed, “but I don’t blame you. They do always have great food.” That may have been the only nice thing that she could say about the Lestranges and their gross flair for the dramatics. Even then, she realized that the compliment was more for whoever would have prepared the food, and she smiled. That was fair enough, she would have felt exactly the same way. “Nothing is going to happen, we’re going to get in, get information, and get out. I’m willing it to happen. All is going to be good.”
Even though she wasn’t all that worried about being recognized, she realized that it was probably time for her to go. Giving Alice one last smile and salute, Marlene winked, “Well, I should be off. Information isn’t going to find itself. Owl me if you need anything while Frank is gone, okay?” Resisting the urge to give Alice a hug, she gave her arm an affectionate squeeze and then disappeared back into the crowd.
mrlenexmc:
*
Marlene had to laugh, “If he doesn’t knock this shit off we’re going to have to step it up a notch to get him to cut it out. Maybe we should get him some chaps and see if he has any shame.” She thought about that for a moment and then dry heaved dramatically, “On second thought, he would probably try to wear them every day, so maybe not.” The last thing they needed was to see Moody try to wear chaps over his kilt. She’d have to gauge her own eyes out, probably.
“Honestly, it’s probably the most excitement this stuffy old party will have, they should be thanking you.” It was a little difficult not to hold some disdain for big Pureblood events after being subjected to them when she was younger. Her family now had a reputation for being ‘blood traitors’, but it hadn’t always been like that.
“Yeah, he’s been gone for ages now, hasn’t he? What’s up with that?” Marlene would probably have to punch herself if she blew Alice’s cover, but there was nothing wrong with a short conversation before she slipped back into the crowd. It was nice to get to talk to her. “Yeah”, Marlene sighed, crossing her arms. They had all known the dangers, but it certainly felt more real being surrounded by people they both knew and suspected were death eaters. It was an absolutely mental plan, which was why she’d been in favour of it, but she still worried for her friends. “You can leave at any point, you know.” She pointed out, not unkindly, “Nobody will judge you if you feel like it’s too risky, you’ve got a little one to think of too.”
...
Alice laughed, nodding in agreement with Marlene’s sentiment. These parties, however lavish and grand, were nothing short of dull. Alice had hated them as a child; though her parents didn’t attend many of the parties all that often, they were careful not to burn too many bridges with the rest of the Rosiers, so she had been subjected to her fair share of boring parties. Luckily for her, Marlene had often been there to liven them up, so it felt full circle that she was here tonight, even if she wasn’t really supposed to be.
Alice shrugged. “He tries to get back at least once every couple of weeks, but it’s usually only for a few hours. I guess it’s taking longer than expected.” She couldn’t really say more, not even to Marlene, because it was Auror business and not anything to do with the Order, so she gave an apologetic smile for her vague response. “Moody promised he’d be back in time for the birth, though, so fingers crossed I don’t go too early.”
Alice’s smile softened at Marlene’s words. “Thanks, Mar, but I’ll be okay. I have the perfect alibi since I was actually invited. I would have come even if we hadn’t come up with this insane plan.” She shook her head, making it clear that she hadn’t been one of the ones on board with this. It seemed more risky than it was worth. “Being able to be here and help if someone gets into trouble is far less anxiety-provoking than sitting at home wondering what’s going on.”
mrlenexmc:
*
Merlin, the Order really had been spending a lot of time together, but it was more out of necessity than anything else. They were like a family of misfits, and she loved them all fiercely even if she liked to pretend that she didn’t. “Yeah, well, if you ever see me in one of his stupid hats then you officially know that it’s a cry for help, and that I’ve officially cracked under the pressure of it all.” Marlene laughed, even with her hair dyed blonde and the mask, she was glad that Alice recognized her. She was shit out of luck if anyone else did, but she was hoping that the rest of the Purebloods at the party were too stupid to recognize her, even if they’d grown up together.
Clapping her hands together, Marlene rubbed them together a few times for dramatic effect, “Great, stay right here”, she demanded, making off in search of a flute of sparkling juice. It didn’t take her long to find a house elf willing to help her, and she sang the elves praises even though their enslavement had always made her really uncomfortable. Returning back at Alice’s side, she handed over the flute with a small bow. It may not have been the best idea to talk to her for too long, but then again, they were supposed to be blending in. Alice had been sent an invitation, you couldn’t blend more than that.
Giving Alice a little two fingered salute, Marlene nodded her understanding as Alice seemed to echo her very thoughts from only a moment ago. “Roger that, capitan.” There were probably a few others in attendance she’d have to avoid, some distant cousins that had seen her with every hair colour under the sun, but she wasn’t too worried. “I promise I won’t linger too long, but how are you feeling?” She couldn’t imagine trying to do all of this pregnant, and a flash of love and admiration for Alice rocked through her.
...
Alice laughed at the mental picture of Marlene wearing one of Moody’s hats, a very amusing image. “You know, we might just have to get you one of those. I think you could really pull it off,” she teased, knowing that Marlene wouldn’t be caught dead in one of them. Glancing over at where Moody stood under one of the hats in question, Alice shook her head. “I don’t think that I will ever understand why he wears one of those. Doesn’t he know anything about American culture? He’s as far from a real cowboy as anyone could be.” Shrugging, Alice looked back to Marlene.
Letting out a laugh as her young friend took off on a hunt for something to scandalize the masses with, Alice leaned back against the wall, allowing herself to rest some of her weight on it for the time being. Marlene was back in a flash, handing over the flute. Taking it, Alice raised it up, tipping it towards Marlene. “Ah, my savior,” she laughed, taking a sip. “I’ll have to drink it slowly so that I can maximize the chance to horrify the mothers.”
Alice waved her off. “Ah, don’t worry too much, I don’t think you’ll blow my cover,” she said, taking another small sip. Considering the question, she shrugged. “Tired, obviously, and wishing that Frank were back from that stupid mission, but overall good.” She lowered her voice so as not to be overheard by anyone lingering nearby. “I do have to say that I’m a little more nervous than usual tonight. If I know my cousin like I think I do, she won’t take kindly to intruders on her celebration, so if anyone gets caught it could turn nasty.”
mrlenexmc:
tagging: @alicelxngbottom
For all the years that they’d known each other, Marlene would have been able to spot Alice Longbottom from a mile away. Alice may have been a few years older than Marlene, but she’d always looked up to her, and, embarrassingly enough, when she was younger had followed Alice around whenever their families were brought together. She was both happy and nervous to see that she’d shown up to the party. The night had so much potential to turn ugly, and while she knew that pregnant women were hardly delicate little china dolls, she held a lot of worry for both Alice and Lily. Alice surely would have been on the guest list though, so at least she had that going for her. Besides, because she’d known Alice for a long time, she knew that it wouldn’t have done much good to try to talk her into staying home, no matter what the danger was. Frank seemed nowhere to be found, and after a while of debating whether or not to approach Alice, Marlene finally decided to, sidling up to her in a way that was meant to be casual but probably came across as anything but. Surely nobody was paying them any attention, and it wouldn’t hurt to check in with her for a few minutes.
“Howdy, stranger, fancy seeing you here”, apparently Moody was rubbing off on them all. “Are you having fun? Should we get you some sparkling apple juice, or something? Give people a heart attack when they think you’re drinking champagne, that could be fun.”
...
As soon as Marlene spoke, Alice recognized the figure that had sidled up to her. Though she was a few years older than Marlene and James and their friends, she had know many of them for all of their lives. Her father, being the most level-headed Rosier, tended to have stronger relationships with the types of families that her aunt and uncle would consider blood traitors, and the Potters and McKinnons fell pretty squarely in that category, along with the Weasleys and the Prewetts and a few others. So it would take much more than a simple disguise for Alice not to recognize the young woman who had always been like a little sister to her. Of course, it helped that she knew Marlene would be around here somewhere. Laughing softly at the greeting, Alice shook her head. “It seems you’ve been spending a little too much time with my mentor over there,” she replied with a slight incline of her head in Moody’s direction.
With another laugh, Alice met Marlene’s gaze. “That sounds like a splendid idea,” she said with a mischievous smile. “I’m a little tired of everyone shoving water on me, and I’d love to see the look on my aunt’s face if she thinks I’m drinking a glass of champagne at this point in my pregnancy.” Of course, Alice’s parents were probably around here somewhere too, but they were far less likely to make any sort of stink, thinking rightly that their daughter was a grown woman who could make decisions for herself. At the thought of her parents, Alice’s face turned a little more serious. “My mum and dad are around here somewhere, try not to run into them. They’d recognize you for cert, and of course they don’t know about the Order.” Beyond the fact that they had been proclaimed a terrorist organization, that was. “They would probably be smart enough not to blow your cover, but just in case.”
