Coral

** Author's Note** Chapters are being re-edited to add extra details, lemons, and corrections.

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She said, "It's lonely here tonight"



She's always sad when she's alone



She said "I need you here tonight"



She couldn't wait 'til I get home



She loves me



And that's all I need to know---



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" Are you going to sleep all day?" Winter asked, prodding Amanda's shoulder with a manicured finger. The older woman stood, fully dressed in a set of loud fuchsia robes, balancing a basket of folded linens on one hip.



Amanda bolted upright.



" What time is it?"



" Almost seven."



" In the evening?" she flung the covers back.



" No. In the morning. Does your husband let you sleep in this long?"



Amanda fell back to her pillow. Seven in the morning...how slothful to waste a whole morning, she thought facetiously.



" I thought I had actually overslept." she grumbled.



" Come on...get up." Winter urged.



" No leniency?" Amanda asked.



" Not in this house." Winter answered, with a smile. " Eloise is having a late breakfast, she wants you to join her."



Amanda stifled a yawn. She had forgotten that Winter ate breakfast at five o'clock sharp every morning, if possible, and usually everyone else in the house breakfasted then as well...if they wanted to eat at all. If Eloise was eating 'late', then she must have spent a great part of the night entertaining the guests she had allowed to remain.



" Where is mother?"



" She had some errands to run. To the stationer's, to the laundry, and to buy some more jam."



Amanda nodded, and kicked her feet free of the covers so as to rise. Winter's dark shapely brows rose dramatically, and she exclaimed a soft 'oh', upon seeing that her granddaughter had slept in her dress. To someone of Winter's sensibilities, such thing was almost an offense against Nature.



" You might have at least found a gown." she chided. '' All of your clothes are still in the closet, the ones you brought with you from America. Why don't you change into something a bit less wrinkled?"



Amanda had forgotten about her Muggle clothes, they belonged to a different, younger Amanda...but she stumbled to the closet and browsed through them dutifully. In the very back was a black cotton tee. Her father had brought it back from Boston when she was sixteen. It was soft, and beginning to wear thin, but if she borrowed one of Stella's skirts, she could make a temporary outfit. Her old jeans would no longer fit.



She excused herself to take a quick bath before facing Eloise and her breakfast.

Her aunt seemed rather groggy when she finally joined her. The table had only a saucer of toast, a pot of strong coffee, and a bottle of headache draught. Eloise took in Amanda's appearance with a bleary eyed curiosity.



" What is that thing you are wearing?" she asked, using her cigarette holder to point at Amanda's torso.



" A shirt."



" What sort?"



" Just a tee shirt."



" It looks...out of place."



Amanda agreed. It made her feel rather self-conscious. She was aware too that it did little to disguise her growing middle, and Stella's skirt was slightly uncomfortable beneath the bulge. Eloise offered her toast, which she accepted tentatively.



" I must say that I do apologize for last night." Eloise said. If Eloise apologized, it always sounded as though it were an effort to put forth.



" Well...we did barge in." Amanda replied, nibbling the toast.



Eloise took out a familiar envelope. It was the invitation to the party.



" Edward sent it over this morning so I could see for myself. Not that I doubted you...I just wasn't too certain it was a joke of Agnes'. There are many pranksters in the world. However..." she took out a second, identical invitation. " This is one of the blanks. I found it in Agnes' room."



" There was no harm done."



" Except to make a fool out you. And in my house. I cannot explain, without a physical demonstration, just how angry that makes me." she smiled sweetly.



" Why was Agnes hosting a party here? Why not at her glorious Umbridge Manor she was boasting of?"



" Didn't you hear?' Eloise snorted. " Adelfried the Magnificent gave her the boot a month ago."



" He did?" Amanda dropped her toast.



" Well...temporarily. She showed up on the doorstep in tears, saying that she was miserable. I took her in, of course, and after a solid hour of amateur dramatics, she did manage to tell me the reason for her evacuation. "



" Which was?"



" He was going away to a secret meeting, Purebloods only. He wanted her to remain behind and keep up their appearances, but he locked her out of his house, saying he couldn't trust a half-blood in there alone." Eloise gave a tight, rather evil smile. "



" That's awful...I mean, Agnes doesn't strive to be the nicest of persons, but I don't believe she deserves that sort of treatment."



" Well, that's generous of you. But I'm afraid I gave her a similar treatment last night. I gave her the money to board somewhere else, though. She didn't even ask why I was sending her away, but she was furious about my causing her embarrassment in front of what she considers to be an influential circle of friends. Hmmph.



She wouldn't even have the decency to find her own circle. That's why she had the party here...it was the only way to get Inkerbach, and Gladys Whetstone to attend. " Eloise paused long enough to draw in an irritated breath.



" Rebecca Blackmoor however...she must have invited her specifically with wicked intent. That woman has never stepped foot in my house. I'll wager that she would have invited Dinah herself if she could have. Amanda...I do not understand such antipathy."





"Well, it does not sound as though her alliance to Umbridge is as pleasant as she flaunted." Amanda noted. "Maybe she is just unhappy?"



" You know, it seemed to me rather suspicious that Agnes did not have to get pregnant. I asked Edward if he still had a copy of the marriage lists, as I thought that perhaps Adelfried Umbridge was not listed. After all, he doesn't seem to have any particular redeeming feature that anyone would need carried on. Any way, Edward gave me the list, and Umbridge is listed. "



" Then...why did they not have to meet the law?" Amanda added more as a statement than a question. " I had been so preoccupied, I had not even noticed. "



" I suspect that sister of his is tampering from within the workings. I just can't see to what purpose."



Amanda gave a small sort of shrug. She couldn't fathom a government without a little conspiracy somewhere in it's workings. She wondered sometimes if it was even her business as an outsider to be concerned. Beyond a reasonable point, at least. She had spent years striving to be a well educated person, and had learned everything by rote. In those days, a subject unknown would have thrown her into a frenzy of research, but recently, she had softened in her self discipline.



She watched as Eloise fitted a cigarette wrapped in a dull gold paper into her ivory holder. She bought the second most expensive brand available in the Wizarding world, made from exotic tobacco grown on special islands where the farmers had all taken a vow of silence. This was supposed to make the tobacco more mellow, but it was most likely the unethical use of ground unicorn bone as fertilizer that gave the herb is tingling taste.



" Some day I might ask you about that that holder. " Amanda stated, once more admiring the tiny carving.



" And one day, I might answer you in full. " Eloise said, smiling. " The fact that it was a gift should suffice for now."



" The artwork...it has a meaning, doesn't it?"



" All artwork has a meaning."



Amanda rested her chin in her palm.



" Does Agnes really hate me?" she asked.



" Yes." Eloise answered frankly. "It's very simple. Your arrival ruined her plans. But it wasn't really your fault, as I made the arrangements. She is pretending that it was your marriage that inconvenienced her, when really her greatest concern was over my money."



Amanda looked a little uncomfortable at the mention of the ill-fated inheritance.



" I've never spoke to you directly about my will, Amanda, but I have always meant to. Since we are alone, at least, if we can pretend Winter doesn't exist which was never hard for me..."



Winter took her sister's hint.



" Oh, you needn't pretend, O sister. I shall simply vanish. "



" Winter! How did you know that was what I have always wanted?"



Amanda bit her lip as her grandmother stood, certain her feelings must be wounded. But Winter seemed to think it was a great joke.



" That's fine, Ellie, dear. I have some finishing touches to add to your birthday present anyhow."



Eloise's face grimmed considerably, and she gave Winter what might have been a silent plea as she swept past.



As soon as the door closed, Eloise blew out a ragged cloud of smoke and her chin almost quivered with some excitement.



" She knows! She does! She just knows that is the one thing that pesters me beyond reason! Every year, she starts creating a birthday gift months before the date, and teases me with it-and no matter how hard I look I can never find it! And it is hidden right here in the house! That's the real insult.Sometimes she buys a new one the day after my last birthday, so it just sits here, for 364 days!"



" Did you try to summon it?"



" Of course I did. I try every year, but she always remembers to protect it." she glanced around the room as though it might provide an unexpected clue. " Now, what was I saying? Oh yes...about Agnes and the money.

I want you to know that it isn't a phenomenal sum. Agnes thinks I have millions stashed in that moldy old vault, but that's not true."



Amanda simply waited.



" Well, fortune or no, it was my money, and it was hard earned. I never had any children of my own, and Agnes and Demogene were the closest of my nieces and nephews. Except Rogero, of course, who is sick, and Stella, who had moved away.



I found myself in a predicament,as I could not trust Agnes, and because of the great influence Agnes held over Demogene, I could not trust her, either. The money would be spent; the house would fall into ruin, be sold, or worse, become a hideout for those people she seems to adore."



Eloise made an expression of great distaste.



" When I called Stella back, it was with every intent to groom you to be my heir, but I found you to need little grooming. You were quite the lady, and much more poised than I could have hoped for. I should have told you the truth then; but I really did not think that it would cause such discord. "



" I only discovered if from Martin, and I was upset."



Eloise shrugged.



" That little toad...I suppose Agnes is the one that passed that information along to him,and she wouldn't have known it had she not been eavesdropping on a discussion between Winter and myself.



What I want you to know, is that I am declaring you as my heir, because I trust you to keep the house in order--I know you love it, and to take care of Winter, and your mother, and Rogero as needed. Also, to be certain that Agnes gets her portion. I suppose she should have Demogene's share as well...it just seems correct. I could never not include her, you understand, I've been her keeper since she was just a little girl."





" I...it's really difficult for me to do this, Aunt Eloise. I'm not very capable, I know little about finances--"



" Nonsense. You'll do, and you'll do well. Don't try to be modest about it. And for pity's sake, don't shy away from the conversation. It's not as though we are discussing something vulgar, it's a frank discussion about money. One day I will die, I'll place my affairs in your hands, and you will act and think wisely in my stead. See how simple that is? "



" Yes, Aunt Eloise."



" Good. Have some more toast. Would you like an egg? You know, I have always known that Agnes was slightly mad. She has already been...well I hate to say

' locked away', but that is what it was. She threatened Demogene, she threatened her own child. All that time...I never suspected Demogene was just as...unhinged."



Amanda patted her aunt's hand, as the other woman seemed on the verge of an almost human moment. She gave Amanda a brief smile and recovered her composure.



" Think of the time and money it would have saved me; I could have had all three of them, Rogero, Agnes and Demogene institutionalized at the same time. Perhaps they would have given me a discount." Eloise said, lightening the mood.



Amanda nodded in amused agreement.



" Mother never talks about her brother. What happened to him?" she asked, glad to avert Eloise's attention from the subject of wills.



" Ah...well, she might not want me to say." when Eloise used that tone, it meant she was fully prepared to divulge someone else's secrets without a trace of true remorse. She just needed proper goading; clever temptation. Amand knew just the right word to use.



" Please?"



" Oh, well, since you are begging me for it. I can't really see the harm in it, either. See,it was an accident. Rogero was accidentally...well, they don't really have a word for it. Jinxed, I guess you could call it. "



" By whom?"



" By whom is not so much the question, as because of whom. Have you ever heard of a man called...Princeton Garrett?"



Amanda drew a sharp breath.



"Father?"



" Yes."



" Go on."



" Well, there really isn't that much to say. Rogero didn't want Stella to marry a Muggle, Stella and he began arguing, and apparently your father, ever the gentleman, stepped in when Rogero began to get slightly physical. Rogero went to hex Princeton, Stella stepped in front, armed...and Winter intervened. "



" So...Winter jinxed him?"



" Or Stella. Well, we aren't sure. His own spell may have ricocheted. "



" What happened to him?"



" He lost a few memories."



" Is that cause for committing a person? I thought that should only be done if they were harmful."



" It's rather about what particular memories he lost..." Eloise's thin mouth twitched in a sardonic smile. " See, he is undergoing treatments, that is why he is kept where he is. Winter and I tried keeping him here after the accident, and caring for him, but he was a little too..."



" What?" she could tell it secretly amused her aunt, whatever it was.



" Well, Rogero believes himself to be a frog. And that was something we just could not have people gossiping about."



" A frog."



" His treatments are rather expensive, but over the years, he has been taught how to speak again, and how to walk upright. They tell us he is making remarkable progress...on his good days."



Amanda wondered whether her aunt might be teasing her, but another glance at Eloise face and she could discern a faint hint of concern. She was being optimistic, when she knew perfectly well that Rogero would never be the same.



" Will they be able to cure him?"



" No. I don't think so. Not completely, or without a miracle. One day, they might let him come home for a visit...but I don't know that the change might not addle his poor wits even more. He was a good boy, really. A little hot tempered, a little snobbish. But all of us Purebloods are, occasionally. Especially then. "



" Mother never said."



" Stella was very young. She had not finished school yet, and knew that she would be in trouble with the Ministry. Even more so because she had implicated a Muggle. I don't think she would have received more than just a reprimand, since Winter had been involved as well, but her biggest fear was what would happen to Princeton. Obviously, the Ministry would Obliviate him, and he would forget about her. So...they eloped. "



" Poor Grandmother! She lost her son and daughter, right there at the same time!"



" Yes. She was agitated for a great while, and there might have been a permanent rift...had it not been for you."



" Me? What did I do?"



" You were born. Winter traveled all the way to Louisiana, in secret to see you. None of the Garretts knew of course, but she and Stella solved all their differences then. You were another continuation of the Rookwood women, an unbroken line for one-hundred and seventy three generations.



There are fewer and fewer women in the line. Yourself, Berenice, and Astarte; the granddaughter of my sister Leda, are the only females of your generation."



" I didn't know that." Amanda liked Aunt Eloise in this mood, and was about to goad her into disclosing more family gossip, perhaps what Eloise's other sisters had been like, when Stella burst through the door.



She was out of breath, but perfectly groomed even at that ungodly hour of the morning; her slender arms full of packages.



" I am going to sew a dress." she informed Eloise as she dumped the packages onto the table, and removed her oversized sunglasses.



Eloise had what was most likely a salty reply on the tip of her delicate, pointed tongue, but Amanda spoke first.



" Good morning, mother."



" Good morning, dear. Well, you do look better." she felt of her forehead just the same. " Did you eat?"



" No, I made her sit there without food while I ate." Eloise said, sweetly. " It's part of my new household economy plan. Guests must bring their own toast. Write that down Amanda, when it is your turn to handle the finances, you will need to know all the best tricks."



At the mention of money, Stella pulled her chin to one side, in what could only be called a 'yikes' expression, in the Muggle world.



" Oh, don't talk about economy, I think I just spent my entire allowance. Do you know how much they were charging to remove the wrinkles from the sheets? We could save money there Aunt Eloise, by just having them cleaned. I can remove wrinkles very well myself. With an iron, if needs be."



" I refuse to sleep on wrinkled linens. If we are ever that close to destitution, then I'll sell one of you for magical research."



" Oh, you couldn't live without us!"



" Better than having someone comment on the shameful state of the bed sheets."



" No one has seen your bed sheets in years." Stella laughed.



" My dear, they might if I didn't have such a houseful of chaperons."



" Well, don't let us stop you."



" Quiet now Stella, you are embarrassing Amanda."



" I'm not embarrassed." she argued. She gave them a reproving look.



Stella stepped behind her, and began smoothing back her hair, preparing to twist it up into something.



" That's right...she doesn't know about such things."



Eloise winked at Amanda, and she colored despite herself, aware of her conspicuous belly. Stella took out her wand and froze her daughter's hair into place.



Then she began rummaging through her sacks. She took out a bolt of something green, and showed it to Eloise, who made a polite sound meaning that Stella should never show her that shade of green again.



" Well, I think it is beautiful. I want a dress out of it. I think I can do by hand, too. And then what I have left, I'll make a baby dress. What do you think, Amanda?"

" I think it's pretty enough."



" We'll match." Stella said perkily, and Amanda was relieved that in the hours since she she had first told her, Stella had again become ecstatic at the thought of a grandchild.



" What if it's a boy, Stella? "



" Then...we'll have it altered."



" The robes...you mean?"



" Of course the robes!" Stella tossed the bolt down indignantly. " You are in an impossible mood this morning, Aunt Eloise! Your party must have been a success."



" After it became my party of course it was a success." Eloise responded, giving her chignoned hair a saucy pat. Still, both she and Stella shared a look of disgust for the course of the prior evening.



" And what about that Whetstone woman?"



" Gladys? I brought her around to my way of thinking before an hour had passed. Geoffrey was a great influence there. And Philo, bless him. I take back anything I might ever have said about that young man. "



" Why?" Amanda asked, " What happened?"



" My dear, I don't know what you and Philo used to talk over, but he apparently holds you in very high regard, and gave an absolutely glowing appraisal of you to Gladys. With Geoffrey's and my help, he soon had poor Ms. Whetstone believing she was always an activist for Muggle rights. She left here last night in one of her moods, prepared to create some masterpiece commemorating the Great Struggle. "



" It sounds as though Gladys was quite taken with Philo."



" Yes, she was. But then, there are a great many persons taken by Gladys, so perhaps she will spread some of her influence in a constructive way." Eloise stood then, straightening her robes.



" And now, I have to see to some things. " she said, looking agitated, and bright eyed. Amanda suspected that she was going to attempt a surprise attack on Winter, in hopes of discovering the hiding place of the mysterious birthday gift.



Stella and Amanda fell into comfortable conversation, as Stella unrolled her material and began using her wand to cut the pattern shapes out.



" I thought you were going to make it by hand?" Amanda asked.



" Oh...well, I'll sew it by hand. But if I cut the patterns by hand then I will have all of those dismally small fabric pieces to pick out of the carpet later. Here, be a dear and pin these for me. "



Amanda gladly accepted the pieces and the kneazle shaped pincushion, and they fell to chatting about Agnes, Philo, and the new baby; keeping themselves occupied late into the morning.



At nine o'clock, Crisp brought a note from Edward saying that he would be there at noon, and since that was still three hours away, Winter decided on an early lunch in the garden, where the soft fragrance of white roses clung around the four women like a soft veil.



After lunch, they sat in companionable silence. Winter worked a drop spindle, and it made Amanda very drowsy to watch the wooden shape spinning to and fro; Stella was sewing rapidly, her silver-thimbled finger working the needle through the sea of green fabric so smoothly it looked like magic; and Eloise, not to be outdone by Gladys Whetstone, had dragged out her easel and paints, and was fussing over her palette, trying to find the right shade of orchid.



Somewhere inside of Amanda, a tiny human being made it's first noticeable movement, as soft as butterfly wings. It's mother, feeling this little ripple, placed her hand over the gently curve, and began to hum; the sound being so soft that it was lost in the outside world, with it's insects, and motorists, and the wind in the trees, but deep within herself, it was heard. The baby fluttered again.

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Edward, though still quite upset over Rebecca's audacity of the night before, was in very high spirits about having met Geoffrey Inkerbach, the author. Apparently, they had enjoyed quite a evening of conversation, and Edward now owned an autographed copy of Inkerbach's newest book, " The Grim", which he wouldn't let Amanda read, due to her condition.



When she could see that a determined pout would not achieve anything, she gave in, and began asking questions instead.



" When Eloise came in last night, she told you to tell Mr. Fenwicke about the convention in Geneva. When did you go to Geneva?" she gave him a rather stern look. He had told her that the convention in Poland was the first he had attended in fifteen years.



Sheepishly, he waved his hand.



" Eloise! She was attempting to be clever.I've never been to Geneva, my dear...it was only a code."



" Geneva Convention. I see..." she smiled at the word play . " But what is it a code for?"



" For certain people who..." he paused and regarded her closely. " For certain people who choose to work against the followers of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. A sort of coalition of persons willing to be watchful, and pass along helpful information."



" Spies."



" No. Spies are much more adventurous. These persons are merely watchful. There are spies, too Amanda. Both sides have their spies, and watchdogs, and networks.Two sides, both of whom are wrong as often as they are right, I am afraid."



" Which side are you on?"



" That..." he said with what sounded like remorse, " was the most difficult decision of my life, I'm afraid. Both sides were intriguing. Both right. Both Wrong. Yes...it's all a matter of perspective. "



He seated them both.



" On one side you had power. Incredible power...and such promises for Purebloods. Oh, but it would have been horrible as well. Absolutely devastating. Nothing the other side had to offer was near so appealing. What could they offer except their word that it was the right way? What is right? What is wrong? I was very fortunate--I never had to choose sides. I don't believe at the time, that I could have done so, with the best intentions. "



He paused to see if Amanda would speak. She had no need. There was only in her gaze the fierce glaze of understanding, the complete neutrality that only a person born outside of that world could assume in all innocence.



He continued.



" I am afraid that I am not all good, Amanda. No one is, not even you, though you must be the closest to goodness I have ever beheld in a grown human. Before...before the law, and before you, I would have made my decision based upon pride. Cowardice. Generations of standards bred into my very bones. I would have allowed the social stigmas of our culture to influence my mind, regardless of where my heart of soul might have stood. But now..."



" Yes...?"



" In my mind I am still uncertain. In my character, I am still ambiguous. In my actions...I can only say that I have decided, and please do not ask me to explain in detail, for I cannot, it is too complex--I have decided to follow what I believe is right. And that is the best that a man can do. Do you understand?"



" I do. And what's more. I agree. A human should only do what they can. "



Her eyes shot back to the purple and black cover of Inkerbach's novel; with it's tantalizing depiction of a buxom redhead having her throat torn out by a black dog-like figure. The cover itself was provocative enough to cause sensation, it was an expensive moving picture.



The grim leapt from a crouching position and latched onto the succulent expanse of the girl's exposed neck, his claws ripping her scarlet dress. She fell backwards over a log, a breast falling from her bodice, the nipple erect in her death throes.



Blood sprayed from her severed jugular, splashing the 'screen', and the grim raised it's head and leered at the reader.



After the woman ceased twitching, the picture faded behind the curtain of blood, before replaying the lurid scene once again.



" That painting is horrible." Amanda said, carefully relinquishing a conversation that was causing him some discomfort.



" Disturbing beyond all reason." He agreed, tucking it under his leg. She was thankful. She had read a book on grim's, after having read an article about one in the Quibbler, and she had felt a chill of superstition at the idea. It reminded her of the haints the Creole women used to talk of. Of hell hounds, doing no good for anyone who ever looked into their eyes.



Another shiver passed imperceptibly over her form, and she was suddenly overwhelmed with an idea that something important was going to happen in the near future. Something very important.

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Lyrics-Chicago