January 22, 1892 - Hogesmeade Village

The Saturdays that the students were permitted to go to Hogesmeade were some of Juniper’s favorites; there was something freeing about being able to meander around from building to building without the hawk eyes of her stepmother following her every movement. She had family pride, and while the Edevane name wasn’t attached to anything grand, the Slytherin did her best not to further taint the name.

The professors were much less diligent with so many students to attend to and it allowed her to slip into some of the less savory shops without much fanfare. (They weren’t Knockturn Alley shops, the ones she truly felt at home in, but she still somehow always managed to return to Hogwarts with something she shouldn’t.) Today her fingers itched for some lacewing flies, and she found herself in the apothecary, her fingers trailing across each bottle lining the shelves. A few other people milled about.

“Ms. Edevane,” A sharp voice broke her concentration on the bottle she was holding, causing Juniper to fumble with it. She managed to catch it, a frown pressing against her lips as she turned her back to the shopkeeper. She grimaced at the floor. The old bat had it out for her and had ratted her out to Grace the first time she’d walked through the door without someone present with her the summer before; she’d made the Slytherin memorize and recite an etiquette guide. Sometimes she still mumbled the words in her sleep.

June tightened her fingers around the bottle as she let out a sharp breath. She couldn’t manage to turn around and smile, choosing instead to frown at the floor as it had personally offended her. Instead, she slipped the bottle back onto the shelf and moved further into the shop, feigning that she hadn’t heard her name called at all. Desperate, her arms wrapped around the arm of a strange man closest to her, and this time she forced a smile. “Pretend to be my chaperone. Please.” A statement, a question, it didn’t matter. She needed him.

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Olixander Blackwood

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Olixander hated the Hogwarts Hogsmeade weekends. There were always so many students floating about, chaperones glued to them like bees to honey. It was crowded in the already small village and their extra buzz (pun intended) didn’t help matters. Still, despite the inconvenience, he’d set out today in the direction of the apothecary. He didn’t have anything particularly imminent to do and all his friends were off living their own lives (how dare they!), so Olixander found himself on the rare occasion alone and meandering.

The young Blackwood hated being alone. It was a situation that often, very aptly, lead to loneliness and that was a sensation he was distinctly acquainted with, yet despised. Being lonely was unbecoming to a young gentleman of means and respectability in the community; he was above that, he was duty-bound to make something of himself to fend off such sensations. What that something was, however, eluded Olixander and that was a whole separate frustration he often grappled with. Today however, mulling as he was around the apothecary, he tried his best to look invested in… what were these? Horned slugs? Maybe he could brew up some sort of trick for one of his brothers when they came home.

Squinting in the vat of squeamish, slimy things, Olixander was startled when out of the blue tiny female hands wrapped themselves around his arm and a pleading (demanding?) voice asked him to act as chaperone. Who in their right mind—?! The boy turned to see a young blonde woman, unfamiliar to him, pressed against his side. Frowning at her, he huffed and tugged his arm away. “Excuse me,” he hissed in her direction. “But whatever it is you’re trying to escape from will hardly improve if you’re found on the arm of some strange, unmarried gentleman don’t you agree?” Olixander didn’t know why he kept his voice lowered. It wasn’t for her sake, surely. Clearing his throat, he spoke again at a normal volume. “Who are you anyway?”

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Juniper Edevane

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As the young gentleman frowned, Juniper found herself matching it; of course it had been a hasty decision and she easily could have slipped out the door without much fanfare to where a professor was, but she was invested in making a purchase. Or moreso, invested in making the old bat eat her words that she’d made the same mistake twice. She wasn’t ever daft enough to do that. (The Slytherin liked to believe that, but at seventeen she made the same faulty decisions several times over without mulling over the fact that she hadn’t learned her lesson the first several times.)

“I don’t think you quite understand the circumstances, and if they did improve my situation I’m still not certain you’d be able to grasp it.” Frowning, June released his arm as he tugged it free  but didn’t step away from him.Most people would be skeeved out by being touched by a stranger, and she would have been no different.  Her eyes flickered  around as she looked for the shopkeeper, who had been caught with a question on her way over. She heaved a sigh and turned back to her not-savior, resisting the urge to roll her eyes.

Here she had two options - introduce herself as well, Juniper, and take the consequences of her actions, or introduce herself as Ophelia and continue to ramp up her sister’s anger until they dueled to the death. Being twin boys would have been more fun but she highly doubted they’d both still be breathing at this age. Either way she knew the shopkeeper would send an owl to Grace the moment she stepped out of the shop and there was little she could do to intercept the letter. Grace would then immediately send an owl, which would spiral the whole situation out of her grasp further. She just wanted some lacewing flies.

“Ms. Edevane is fine.” She replied curtly before turning her full attention to him. While Juniper didn’t trust him, he was the best shot she had to untangle her own webs - next month she was getting drunk on butterbeer.  Her lips quipped into a slight smile. “June if you wish to skip all formalities.”

The old bat’s heavy footsteps approached them causing her to press her lips together; she had nothing on hand to offer him, and it wasn’t as if the Edevane name carried much, if any meaning in the upper class world. “I promise I can make this worth your while. One favor, within reason of course.”

If Grace sent her a Howler, Juniper might melt into the floor and die.

****
Olixander Blackwood

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Unamused by the girl’s response altogether, Olixander raised a skeptical brow in her direction. He was unimpressed by her social manner; she must be middle class. Curling his lip a little bit, Olixander looked the blonde up and down. She was pretty, if one was into that devilish pixie type. For his part Olixander thought those women were too much work. Still, her big green eyes had a way of keeping him looking at her that he wasn’t entirely put off by.

As the girl introduced herself as Edevane, Olixander tried to think back to see if that was a name he recognized. He supposed it was. Not distinctly. There was nothing remarkable or even notable that he could recall about her family name, but at least it was pureblood. And, surprisingly, upperclass. A dark brow raised in the girl’s direction as she very forwardly introduced herself further. Before Olixander could quip back that it wasn’t very lady-like to be so informal with a stranger, footsteps caught the man’s attention. He turned to see the shopkeeper attempting to make her way over and Olixander wondered if that was who the girl was hiding from. (And why…?)

Finally, however, a more interesting proposition caught his attention and Olixander turned back to face Ms. Edevane fully. Now she was speaking his language. With a wry grin stealing across handsome features, Olixander leered at her. “Alright June,” he conceded, changing tactics. “One favor, no conditions. Take it or leave it by the time that hag finds us.” Timed almost perfectly, Olixander had just finished speaking when they were interrupted by a harsh voice.

“Ms. Edevane, I do hope you’re not here without a chaperone again!”

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Juniper Edevane

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Juniper frowned as he used her first name before negotiating the conditions she’d set out; there wasn’t much she could do to counter at this point, lest she wanted to deal with Grace and the consequences that would result from being unchaperoned in Hogsmeade. She couldn’t lose her privileges to come here once a month, as she would simply lose her mind if Poppy and Ida left her at the castle for hours. And she’d never hear the end of it from Ophelia! Juniper would be expelled because she’d ensure her twin sister had no tongue the moment she made a mockery of her.

Her choice was clear. As he turned toward the heavy footsteps, Juniper’s gaze followed. The old hag was in front of them now, her hands propped against her hips as she watched the pair between narrowed eyes. June met her gaze and held her head up as she demanded to know if she was unchaperoned. Yes.. 

June put on her best coy smile as she glanced up to the stranger, her arm looping around his. She batted her eyes at him; he wasn’t the worst looking man, but his attitude was rotten. Not that she had a leg to stand on when it came to her own. Then she turned her attention toward the woman. “Of course not ma’am. My dear cousin is a hermit by choice, mother’s side of course, and it took me so long to convince him he must visit me in Hogsmeade! The first place I simply had to show him was my favorite apothecary.”

Juniper shifted her gaze as she smiled at him. The shopkeeper’s eyes flicked to him for a moment, as if assessing him. The last thing June needed was for him to open his mouth and ruin everything - this woman was too good of friends with Grace for him to open his mouth. So she tugged on his arm in the opposite direction of where the old hag was, hers still looped through his.

She opened her mouth to say something, anything to get herself out of the situation she was in. The woman seemed unamused, but June interrupted her, and she snapped her lips closed, clearly annoyed - June hated how the hag looked at him for answers. She wasn't that terrible of a liar. “Come now, Igor. I know I promised to help you with Sleekeazy’s Hair Potion before curfew.”  She grinned at him. As much as she wanted to reach up and touch his hair, even she had boundaries she wasn’t willing to cross with a stranger.

So she winked at him instead.

****
Olixander Blackwood | Igor, Frankenstein's assistant. Whoops.

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   Olixander Blackwood

Olixander grinned a brilliant, charismatic, all around lovely smile directly at Ms. ‘June’ Edevane as the owner of the apothecary confronted them. He could see the hesitation in her eyes and he couldn’t help but wiggle his brows at her. There really was no choice for the girl standing beside him if she wanted his help, and Olixander didn’t regret anything. He didn’t dole out favors for free, after all. The brunette waited a split second longer and he could almost see the exact moment she realized she was beaten. Olixander resisted the urge to preen, instead placing a hand gently overtop of hers which had come around to grasp his arm again. He opened his mouth to respond to the woman but June cut him off quickly.

A hermit. Olixander frowned and gave June a skeptical look. The woman who owned the apothecary looked at him then though and Olixander, for all his pride, nodded along with that the little weasel beside him was saying. They’d both be lucky if the woman didn’t recognize him for who he was! Olixander didn’t oft need things from the apothecary, but he’d wandered in here today hadn’t he. Squeezing the girl’s hand warningly, he made to say something else but she jerked him towards the isle and just kept jabbering.

Igor? Olixander’s eyes narrowed a fraction. Igor, as in that heinous monster that was so popular? (Not having read Frankenstien he couldn’t be sure and he definitely didn’t know Igor was only the assistant!) But hair potion?! Alright, that was quite enough. Tugging his arm from Ms. Edevane’s grasp, Olixander let out a snort. “Oh how you do love your jokes, cousin,” he said, shaking his head at the woman. His eyes were communicating “help me” to the poor apothecary owner and he hoped it sold her on the fact that he was, quite literally, stuck with June. “We shouldn’t lie while out in public,” he continued. “What if this poor woman believed you.” He gave June a discreet pinch on the arm for emphasis. “I am truly sorry madam, we will be out of your - lovely - hair, momentarily. Come, come June.”

Wrapping his arm around her waist and practically dragging the girl towards the door, Olixander paid her interests at staying in the apothecary no mind. He didn’t like to consider himself a vain man (who was he kidding, he was utterly self-obsessed), but that last one had hit a little below the belt. Olixander had lush hair and didn’t need any such potion to keep it looking as spectacular as it did. Maneuvering them through the door, he tossed one last charismatic grin over his shoulder at the owner and stepped outside. They had business to attend.

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Juniper Edevane

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She turned toward him and preened herself for spinning an almost believable tale; if he was going to force her hand like that, she was going to take him down a peg. Even if the shopkeep didn’t believe everything, Juniper had least put doubts in her mind and the next time she saw him she might do a double take. That was all that mattered at the moment; she wasn’t going to allow him any upper hand if she could allow it, even if she’d caught him in her web of lies to begin with. When he fixed her mistakes saying she was lying June smiled through her teeth as she blinked up at him before offering a coy smile.

Then he pinched her! She nearly jumped from the pain that lasted just as quickly as it had appeared, but instead tightened her arm around his. Juniper glanced at him from the corner of her eye as she clamped her mouth shut, allowing him the final words to the shopkeeper. She looked satisfied enough to move on about her day without picking up a quill to write to her stepmother, which she was thankful for. She nearly breathed a sigh of relief, although she knew there was still the other matter of what his price was.

There he was then, saying her name like he owned it and wrapping his arm around her waist to steer her outside. Juniper leaned into him. She moved to protest - she had come in here for a reason ! -  but she followed himself outside the building, lacewing flies forgotten without much fanfare. Her father would owl her some if she was desperate.

As soon as they were outside June tugged away from him in favor of reaching to pinch his hand, her eyebrows furrowed together. “What may I call you? Though I can keep calling you Igor if you like.” She didn't wink, her face wrinkling for a moment to keep herself from doing it. Then she wet her lips and smiled at him, taking a small steps closer. “Thank you, even if it didn’t come from the goodness of your heart. One favor, no conditions.”

She could only hope he wasn’t a creep. But then again, she did knew a hex or two.

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Olixander Blackwood

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Olixander felt the woman in his arms resist him, throwing her weight back and making it hard to maneuver her out the door. What a little harpie! He should have left her there all on her own to be eaten by the shopkeeper. Regretting his decision more every minute, the brunette heaved the girl by what he could out the door and hoped nobody he knew saw him positively manhandling a strange seventh year student. (Even if she was rather pretty.)

Once they were outside and a little out of the way, he felt something pinch him in the hand. Pulling away quickly, he frowned at Ms. Edevane. “My name is Olixander,” he replied shortly. “Olixander Blackwood. Though you can call me Mr. Blackwood.” He straightened to his full height, over a half a foot taller than her, and preened a little bit. It was nice being the eldest brother on occasion. As the girl stepped closer to him however and made a seemingly genuine gesture of gratitude, the brunette’s eyes narrowed. If she thought she was going to get out of this by batting those lashes, she was in for a surprise. He’d held up his side of the bargain; now it was her turn. Olixander cleared his throat.

“My favor is requesting your presence for one evening of intimate, hedonistic subtlety.” Olixander emphasized the word hoping she would get the picture. Idly, he wondered if it was a mistake to trust this absolute stranger, but he dismissed the concern. It was her word against his lest anything happen and she had more reason to fear the implications of their rendezvous coming out than he did. Pausing, to let the meaning of his statement sink in, Olixander threw the girl a salacious smile and waited for her to react. There was more to his request. Even he wasn’t vile enough to rescue a woman from herself and then demand sexual favors as recompense, but she didn’t have to know that. And a little fright might do her some good.

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Juniper Edevane

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As he frowned Juniper mirrored him; while she hadn’t expected to be on a first name basis with him, she hadn’t expected him to tell her specifically to call him Mr. Blackwood; she would call him Olixander whenever she felt like it, just to spite him and in time, he’d learn they were in fact, on a first name basis. Then he stood to his full height and June straightened her own back despite being much shorter than him; it didn’t matter - she relied on her appearance more than her ability to muscle someone. (And when that failed, well, she had a handful of dark arts up her sleeve that she was itching to use.)

Still, she merely tilted her head and waited in silence as he told her his favor - an intimate, hedonistic evening. Her first instinct was to open her mouth: what kind of woman do you think I am?! but she clamped her jaw shut until it ached. Juniper would give no implications that perhaps she had been that kind of woman once but never again. Her thoughts reeled over the intimate portion first, and Juniper couldn’t help but drag her eyes down Olixander’s body, shrugging at the end; he was good looking for sure. The hedonistic thought came after and she couldn’t help the blush that spread across her cheeks, causing her to scoff and look away from him. The people in Hogsmeade milled about, minding their own business. She hated showing embarrassment.

There had to be a way out of their arrangement; there was no way for him to know she’d done anything intimate in her life and she certainly wasn’t willing to trust a stranger with anything related to intimacy. She took a small step back from him as a slight frown settled across Juniper’s lips. She’d force Poppy to come with her and make sure nothing happened. Not that she needed her. June would turn him into a pig before he could even utter an intimate suggestion.

Finally green hues blinked up to look at him as she crossed her arms tightly across her chest. “If you’re inviting a strange woman to that kind of evening Mr. Blackwood, then I suspect you must not be satisfying.” June’s lips curved into a subtle smile as she blinked owlishly at him, her pale cheeks still tinted pink. She’d slept with an older man before and look where that had gotten her. “Perhaps you’d be better suited for a prostitute who wouldn’t mind a subpar performance. I’d be happy to pay for one.”

****
Olixander Blackwood

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Olixander watched the various emotions flit across Miss June Edevane’s face with a smug satisfaction. He swore he could see her turning slightly pink and he had to admit, triumph was sweeter than vengeance. She curled in on herself on the defensive and Olixander only grinned wider. It served her right for being so difficult. She was lucky he was half a decent man; anyone less so would easily have wrapped her around their finger and made of her a creampuff. Or worse, rags.

Not appreciating the implication that he was at all subpar in the sack, however, Olixander rolled his eyes. “How very original,” he quipped back at her. Something along the lines of ‘I thought you were one’ or ‘you would have such acquaintances’ tickled the tip of his tongue but the eldest Blackwood held them back. He had learned his lesson about telling women they looked like prostitutes and he was not about to make that mistake again. Not for a long time.

Instead, he changed the subject. “It’s a good thing I don’t have any appetite for your scrawny little self because this evening isn’t for me,” he drawled. Not in that way, at least. “I need you to attend a rather… scandalous gathering on my arm.” He thought about the best way to propose this to her without being too completely transparent. Gently, he tugged the Slytherin a bit away from the traffic of people hustling along the street and paused under a small grove of trees. Sunlight filtered through the branches above them in a way that would have been warm had it not been mid-winter.

“I’m trying to uncover an identity.” He stated, voice lowered. “The identity of a hostess who held a very particular type of event for the full moon earlier this month. She has plans for another in the coming weeks, this time a play.” He paused, trying to gauge her expression. “I need you to come with me and assist in the investigation. If you do that, we’ll call it square.”

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Juniper Edevane

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She scowled at the comment but merely pressed her lips together to keep from arguing with Olixander - he simply wasn’t worth the effort. Instead she blinked at him and allowed herself to be pulled from the street toward a small grove of trees, her head
turning behind them to ensure she could still see people; the last thing she needed were the rumors swirling that she’d disappeared with a Blackwood. (Not that she couldn't do worse, but she certainly could do better.) Juniper furrowed her eyebrows together as she let him finish talking.

A scandalous event; really, what kind of woman did he actually think she was! A woman didn’t have the same luxuries as a man when it came to such events, although she doubted he cared little about it. She scoffed at him as anger rolled across her skin, her fingers curled into the fabric of her robes as she stepped toward him scowling. 

“First off Olixander Blackwood, you are asking me to tarnish my reputation for what appears to be a silly game?” She hissed back quietly. Juniper frowned as she stepped forward and stabbed her finger into his chest; her lips pressed into a frown as she flipped her gaze up to him. She couldn’t help but glare at him. “If you think for one second that if I am seen there unchaperoned with you that there will be little consequence then you are sorely mistaken. That would ruin my entire future and I swear on my life I will make it my personal life goal to ruin yours.”

Juniper flicked a piece of blonde hair over her shoulder; it was a threat, and while not intimidating outwardly, he didn’t know her innate desire to already ruin a life. She could add a second name to the list no problem, especially if she were to drop to such a low reputation that her entire life would be ruined. She’d have too much time on her hands and no one to tell her no.

“And trust me, Mr. Blackwood, I am not afraid of the dark.” She quipped, lips curving into an amused smile. “However, if you can find a way for my reputation to stay perfectly intact, you will hold every woman on your arm after me to a standard that I will set.”

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Olixander Blackwood

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   Olixander Blackwood

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Eyes going a little wide as actual anger flicked across her face, Olixander’s watched the little blonde before him keenly. She was a firecracker, wasn’t she? Well, he supposed he couldn’t blame her. She was right in that being seen there, at her age, unchaperoned, still not out in society, and with him of all people would not do her reputation any favors. He wasn’t a complete imbecile however, despite what she might think, and he had a solution for this very problem. If she was willing, that was.

Grinning at the blonde, Olixander made no move to back away as her face came very close to his. Instead, he leaned even closer and tilted his head to whisper just in her ear: “You are rather more attractive when you’re angry,” and then pulled away to laugh.

“While I don’t doubt you’re serious about that whole life ruining business, there’s no reason to fret.” He continued. “I have a scheme that, if carried off correctly, will be as if you were never even there. Nobody shall suspect a thing.” He nodded at the blonde, pleased with his own foresight. While he did have a plan, there was nothing to say it was fool-proof. He had a lot of ducks to organize yet before the date came to fruition. Still, Olixander was nothing if not confident.

“Do we have a deal, monita?” He drawled, a lazy Spanish accent playing between British vocals.

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Juniper Edevane

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Olixander’s breath was hot against her ear and before she could rear back away from him, he was stepping back, laughing. She couldn’t but notice where she was spitfire and anger, he was calm and rolled with the punches. He was trying to rile her up and Juniper wouldn’t have that; if he wanted to see anger, he hadn’t seen anything yet, although it’s not as if he’d done anything to June for her to feel the need. She just smiled coyly at him and winked. “I aim to please.”

June paused before she replied, her head tilting as she studied him for a moment. “Hmm, perhaps you’re smarter than you look.” He had gone with her story of a cousin to protect her from the shopkeeper, and she doubted that he’d ask such things of her to ruin her reputation on his own terms - after all, she’d pretty much proved she was capable of doing that herself at any given time.

Then came the thought of why her. She’d been easily manipulated once (and she would make him pay for making her into a naive child, hanging off his every word), and she’d be damned if she would allow for it to happen again. Juniper’s gut told her to trust him. Maybe he wanted a fresh set of eyes, or maybe he wanted someone smarter than him to pick up clues he may have readily missed.

The thought made her giggle quietly before she turned to blink up at Olixander. Monita? She made a mental note to look that word up in the library upon their return; Spanish (Italian?) certain wasn’t a language she spoke, nor understood. “I’m trusting you, Igor so try not to break it.” Juniper finally settled on. Trust was not something she took lightly nor was it something she gave often.

Then she smiled at him, no teeth, for good measure.

****
Olixander Blackwood

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Olixander couldn’t help the slightly more genuine laugh that broke from him as Miss June Edevane finally agreed and by proxy, called him Igor. So it would seem they had a plan, code-names and all.

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” he replied, honestly enough. Then, with a solid wink and tip of his hat as it swung back up onto his head, Olixander turned on his heel and walked away. If he had a little bit more pep in his step than before, well, that was his business.

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