"Leaving her her was precisely the plan that we had arranged," Aldous pointed out firmly, "and under the circumstances..."

Aldous was not sure how far down this road he was prepared to venture, but even crippled, it was one he would walk if it saved his brother from a lifetime of misery and manipulation.

"A few days, perhaps?"

— Reuben Crouch —

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   Reuben Crouch

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— Aldous walks with a cane and pronounced limp as the result of a splinching accident. —

— graphics by lady ❤ —

Ben hesitated. He didn't like it, and he wasn't sure, if he left, that he would find Melody here when he returned, note or no. On the other hand, Aldous knew too much about the situation for him to just refuse. He could ruin them both with little more than a word to the wrong people. And, despite his reluctance, he did realize that Aldous was trying to do his best by Ben, the same as he always did.

"Let me tell her I'm going in person. No note," he decided. "Then I'll go with you."

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   Aldous Crouch, Arthur Pettigrew

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Aldous did not like it, but he could tell that Reuben was decidedly reluctant about this new arrangement. He checked his pocket watch, the same watch that had belonged to their father. Aldous very much doubted that this was the life Malachi Crouch had envisioned for his sons.

"A quarter of an hour," he said by way of agreement, "and I shall wait right here."

— Reuben Crouch —

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   Arthur Pettigrew, Fallon Gillespie, Reuben Crouch

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— Aldous walks with a cane and pronounced limp as the result of a splinching accident. —

— graphics by lady ❤ —

Well, that was the best that he was going to get, and Ben recognized that. Of course Aldous would wait here, between them and the one fireplace connected to the floo network, so that they couldn't run away. It was weird, seeing it all from this perspective. Ben had been the one inclined to run away from consequences for so long that Aldous knew just what to do to prevent him. It wasn't necessary now, but of course he didn't know that.

"Alright," he agreed with a nod. He looked towards the stairs and took a deep breath, steeling himself for this conversation, then headed up. He took another deep breath before he knocked softly, tentatively on the door.

"Mel?" he called, mouth only an inch or so from the wood to prevent his words from carrying downstairs. "I, ah. I need to come in."

Melody Crouch

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   Aldous Crouch

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Melody hadn't slept well for the third night in a row, leaving her exhausted and unwilling to move further than the bucket placed by the side of her bed. Not even forty-eight hours ago she was convinced Ben would abandon her for his son's mother, and now he was in love with her. The emotional whiplash was enough to exhaust anyone, nevermind an early expectant mother. Once one added in the profuse illness it was hilarious to expect her to rise from bed at all.

She read and reread Ben's short note several times throughout the morning as she tried to muster the energy to see him. After a year of convincing herself she was alone in their marriage, to expect the bare minimum from him, she wasn't sure she was ready to handle a flipped version of that. Ben would expect her to be happy thats he finally arrived to the same place she stood all along, but in reality it only made her all the more reluctant to engage as he wished her to. What if this was all a ruse? What if he had some other grand plan to desert her and not have to pay whatever alimony she was granted in the divorce? (Which, if they were truthful in why they were separating would be exactly nothing.)

A shout downstairs woke her from the brief nap she had finally settled enough to take. Had Arthur come back to snap Ben from his stupor, then? Melody tried to sit up quickly only to face the untouched breakfast from that morning. Although the plate was now cold and no longer filling the air with its savory scents, she had shifted close enough to the tray to revolt at the smell of porridge had her reaching for the bucket once more. Arthur and his shouting would have to wait.

Only, he needn't wait long as Ben was at the door only minutes later. Reaching for her wand, Melody did away with the bucket and stood on shaky legs. Merlin, she really needed to sleep. She held her dressing gown shut as she opened the door for him, meeting his nervous expression with a look of confusion. "Is everything alright?" She asked, stepping back far enough to let him in.

Her room was still in a state of disarray and it was obvious from her own appearance that she, too, was in a similar state.

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   George Waterford

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Is everything alright? No, things were about as far from alright as they could be, but Ben was trying to pretend he was handling it. His brother was more or less forcing him to abandon his pregnant wife, but they'd all get through this, somehow. Aldous thought Melody was a criminal who would use unforgivable curses on Ben at the slightest provocation, but sure, yeah, everything was going to be fine.

"Afraid not," he said, leaning on the inside edge of her doorway but not going entirely into her room. He halted for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to tell her this — or, more accurately, the way to explain it that would result in her staying put until he could make it back to her.

"I, uhm. I don't want you to take this the wrong way," he said, rubbing the back of his neck again. There was no way he could say he was leaving without calling to mind when he'd done so just a few days prior, but he wanted to try his best to impress on her that this wasn't the same. He wasn't abandoning her... at least, not by choice.

"I've, ah — I've got to go away a few days. Family thing," he said vaguely, by way of explanation.

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   George Waterford

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Right. It hadn't even been a day since his confession and he was already leaving. Don't give up on me, he pleaded, but how was she to do anything but when he was leaving for a few days. Nothing about an abrupt departure said 'I love you and want to be with you.' In fact, if it said anything at all it was the direct opposite. Wasn't that why he'd left two days ago? Wasn't that what a year's worth of actions had proven?

At least she was too exhausted last night to unpack.

Melody folded her arms tight across her chest and dropped her gaze to the floor. "Just go." She eventually responded, too tired to go through this all once again. "If I'm not here I'll be at Benevolence's." She gripped her door with the intention of closing it on him.

  

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If there was one thing he knew about Melody, it was how she acted when she was upset. They'd fought too often for him not to see the signs, and he stopped the door with his hand almost as soon as she'd grabbed it.

"Hey," he said, moving his face closer to hers to try and force her to look at him. "This doesn't change what I said last night, alright? I love you," he insisted. "If I could stay, I would. If I could take you with me, I would. It's just — I just have to do this. It'd probably be good for you to stay with a friend for a few days," he added, glancing down at her stomach for one fleeting moment. "Can I have the address?"

  

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Her grip on the door tightened. Must he be so cruel? Not even on their wedding night under the influence of that fucking potion could Ben confess to such emotion, and now he was saying it as though it came naturally. As though it were true.

Obviously, if either of those were true he wouldn't be leaving for an undetermined length of time again.

She tried not to be hurt that even in the midst of their pretending he hadn't noted who her friends were. It wasn't as though she was intimately familiar with all his friends, after all. But, still, Benevolence and Diana were as close to her as he was to Arthur. And he didn't even know where she lived. "I'll leave it on the mantle downstairs," she replied without commenting upon the rest of his speech. Her first thought was to leave it upon his desk but thought that was a rather touchy subject still. "I hope whatever it is works itself out easily enough." Melody tried to close the door again.

  

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Aldous gripped the handle of his cane tightly, an anxious energy coursing through him as his other hand moved to check his watch. Only just a third of the time he had allotted his brother had passed, though it seemed in truth like it had been three times a quarter-hour. The stairs were just visible through the door, but Aldous could only guess what was happening at their zenith.

He was, usually, a patient man, but this was not a usual occasion.

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   Melody Crouch, Reuben Crouch

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— Aldous walks with a cane and pronounced limp as the result of a splinching accident. —

— graphics by lady ❤ —

This was not a good resolution, but under the circumstances perhaps it was the best he could hope for.

"Alright. Yeah. I hope so, too," he said, but kept his hand on the door, still preventing her from closing it. "I can write you," he offered, a little desperately. "We can write each other. Would you do that? Please?"

  

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The last time Melody had penned anything other than a passing note to Ben was when he was in Canada and her letters went unanswered. Even then at the height of their relationship he hadn't wished to communicate with her. Why should now be any different? Because they were married? Because of the baby?

Suddenly, the love declaration made sense to her. He thought himself in love because of the baby, because he feared anything less than that would cause her to harm their child again. Melody bit her tongue to keep from reacting. That was an even more disappointing reason than having none at all. At least if they were to separate she might one day find someone to love her for her and not for her womb.

Melody gave one quick nod. "Sure, yeah. Whatever you need.'" That was the only reason she agreed not to withdraw from their marriage, after all. One last attempt was what he needed.

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   Arthur Pettigrew

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Whatever you need was not particularly encouraging, but what was he supposed to do about it? He didn't know how many of his allotted fifteen minutes remained to him, but even the full time wouldn't have been enough to convince her that he was sincere.

"It's only a few days," he insisted. "Promise. I'll be back as soon as I can."

If she understood the stakes, she'd understand why he had to go, but he couldn't tell her where he was going or what he was doing without first revealing that he'd told Aldous about the potion, and he knew if he dropped that on her it would break her. Melody being gone when he returned would be the most mild scenario; she'd always been prone to making rash decisions.

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   Aldous Crouch, Arthur Pettigrew

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"Okay." Melody lamely agreed, because, really, it wasn't as though she could say anything to stop him. And, more importantly, she wasn't sure she wanted to. Perhaps when he came back in a few days he would apologize for letting those words slip. Perhaps then they could both move forward in a direction that might lead them to happiness.

"I'll see you in a few days, then." She added.

  

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"Alright," Ben agreed. He hesitated. There was nothing more to say, but he was reluctant to go. He'd been finding excuses not to actually say goodbye for the past three minutes already, though, since she'd agreed to him leaving so cavalierly. As though she didn't care whether he stayed or went. He knew that wasn't true. She was putting on an act and trying to keep however she really felt about it out of reach, and he wished he could have given her some real comfort, but there wasn't time for that.

"Alright," he said again, finally taking his hand off the door. "I'll write. Tell me when you get to your friend's house. Please."

Then, with a heavy sigh, he headed back down the stairs.

"Alright," he said wearily to his brother. "I'm ready. Let's go."

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   Melody Crouch

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For a moment, Aldous scrutinized his brother in silence, searching for any indication that something might be amiss, might have changed since he had left to talk to her. Reasonably satisfied that this was, indeed, Reuben, Aldous replied, "Very good, then."

He held his hand out towards the fireplace in an after you gesture.

  

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— Aldous walks with a cane and pronounced limp as the result of a splinching accident. —

— graphics by lady ❤ —