weightless | abc

[addilyn elara slater]

Make believe that I impress

That every word by design
turns a head

December 24, 2026
BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH ,
Raphael Caelan McLaggen

If Addy was still living at home, she might have told her mother that she’d been invited to the Potter Christmas Party. Surely that would satisfy their need for their children to have some kind of prestigious connection. However, the invitation wasn’t entirely directly for her, which is why she hadn’t brought it up. But Brígh and her brother Bran were close to James, plus the McLaggens had grown up as neighbors to the Potters as well as the Bainbridges. It seemed that only Dickie and herself didn’t have direct connections. She glanced at herself in the mirror one last time. While she had met the Potter children at some point for various reasons, she had never met their parents. Claire had trained under Harry. Perhaps Grey had met him during his unfinished Auror training or even with his work in the paper. But Ginny worked at the paper as well.

”Cheese said he would meet us there.” Addy called out, picking up her phone from its charger as she stuck her head into Brígh's room. ”Are you ready yet? We’re going to be late.” The past few weeks had been spent packing and moving, which, thankfully, wasn’t all that difficult with magic. And now that her best friend was one of her roommates, they’d even gotten a small tree for the holidays to decorate. The taller parts of the tree required magic, while the parts they could reach they decorated by hand. Addy had to remind Brígh they had magic at their disposal when she confidently announced the idea that one stand on the other’s shoulders.

But despite her slight nervousness, Addy was looking forward to this. With everything that happened in May and going their separate ways, she missed seeing her friends so often. Brígh was in Egypt most of the time, and everybody had a busy work schedule. Dickie was off at another school, but they would all write to him. It was a chance to see familiar faces and celebrate the holidays, especially since Addy had the usual Slater Christmas dinner to attend to the following day. Now, whether Claire would assault her brother with glitter once again was still up in the air. Brígh didn’t answer her so she took a few steps in. ”Brígh?” She asked impatiently.

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[BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH]

The six months following the fall of Hogwarts had been a whirlwind of activity. Brígh had started her curse breaker training, Cheese had gone off to the paper, and Addy had started her internship with the ministry. The three were incredibly busy, but that didn't mean they didn't make time for one another. It was difficult, sure, especially in the first months. Addy's mother had insisted that she move home, and Brígh had moved in with a colleage and new found friend, Irina Krum. Irina had been a few years above her in school, but was lovely all the same. And she was great to chat about how grumpy Rhys was. Cheese lived in London as well, and the pair had made an effort to see each other at least twice a month when they could.

Brígh was only sidetracked by the fact that Aidan had moved to London. Sure, the outskirts of London, with his apparently hunky cousin (Brígh had not met him yet to confirm) but Brígh was not the sort of person to worry about that. She was completely smitten with Aidan as it were. She doubted some hulking druid would be able to sway her - simply put, that wasn't her type. Brígh loved being able to pop over and see Aidan and his garden - her boyfriend still had so much to teach her, and they tried a myriad of different teas each time they saw each other. Her heart fluttered at the word, bringing a smile to her face even as the idea of him drifted through her mind.

Yule was upon them now, and naturally Brígh had been invited by all three Potter children to their annual Christmas do. Since the fire, Brígh naturally had drifted closer to both James and Lily, visiting the latter at the joke shop every time she was in Diagon Alley. Brígh had hesitantly proposed spending some time with Aidan, which he had agreed at long last. They would meet up later in the week, which was alright considering Brígh knew of Aidan's hesitancy to bring an outsider to Hy-Brasil.

Brígh had tried to insist upon decorating the flat that Addy had eventually joined her in the muggle way, though her best friend resisted. Upon further thought, Brígh realised perhaps Irina would be rather cross with them for destroying the sitting room. The invitation had shortly after arrived for the Potter Christmas party, and Brígh insisted both girls join her - though Irina had some work to do before attending, and would meet them there.

"Will he?" called Brígh back to her best friend. "I suspect we may have to drag him from his childhood bedroom kicking and screaming. Perhaps we can tease him out with the promise of taking loads of photos?" said Brígh, tucking a piece of red hair behind her ear. Her freckles had faded somewhat in the past year, despite the fact that she had spent so much time in the sun. Addy rounded the corner, her tone impatient. "Just a moment," she added after a moment, shooting a look at the blonde over her shoulder. She turned back to her reflection, completed her look with a swipe of bright wed lipstick. "There. Let's go, Addy, don't want to keep the team waiting," said Brígh loftily, drifting past Addy in robes of deep emerald, flicking her hair over her shoulder imperiously as she did. "How much firewhisky do you reckon I can sneak in?" she added after a moment.

addilyn elara slater
Raphael Caelan McLaggen
Irina Rose Krum for reference

[Raphael Caelan McLaggen]

24 December 2026

For the first time that Rafe could remember – he’d beaten both of his best friends to an event. He was always the late type, never realizing what time it was until he raced to track down his trainers and arrive out-of-breath to wherever they’d agreed to meet. But he had an advantage over the girls this time, since he’d already been at Godric’s Hollow for several days to visit home. It wasn’t as much fun as it sounded – Cormac was still sore about the fact that Rafe had broken the family tradition and opted not to join a pro Quidditch team. He was testy as he walked around the house slamming doors shut and shooting dark looks at his potatoes during dinner, but Cheese wasn’t around much to see that anyway. He missed his friends so much now that they’d all graduated and weren’t living five minutes away from each other anymore. Seeing them was much harder than simply scaling the steps of Gryffindor Tower or walking past the Kitchens into a different part of the Dungeons.

So now that he was close to Penelope and the Bainbridges again, at least for the holidays, Cheese had been practically spending more time there than in the McLaggen home. Besides that, he saw Brígh more often than most of his other friends, since they were both locally based in London (whenever she wasn’t breaking into pyramids, at least). And Addy – well, she was insanely busy at the Ministry and Rafe had been going crazy for a while there at the lack of privacy. It was a little better now that she’d finally done the logical thing and moved in with Brígh, which was really the only housing solution he would accept. Cheese loved Puff Palace, loved his new roommates and the wacky dynamic he had with each of them, but there was nothing more right than at least two-thirds of the gang being in the same place at the same time.

So yeah, he’d only had to walk a couple streets over to arrive at the Potter holiday party, same as he did every year. He wasn’t particularly close with any of the Potter family, but he’d given Albus a respectful nod of acknowledgment and fluidly stepped to the side as a pair of giggling Weasleys sliced through the crowd. Lily was nowhere in sight -- odd for a party -- but Rafe wasn't looking particularly hard. Instead, he kept an eye out for Brígh’s flaming red hair, although he couldn’t make out if they’d arrived yet or not. The Potters were a popular family, and the place was already quite crowded. But Cheese was content with his camera and snapping a few shots of the decorations and people laughing as they toasted each other with Butterbeer. He’d stubbornly brought his camera, even though his mum complained every year that it was an odd thing to do. But it made Cheese happy, and he was trying this new thing of doing what he liked instead of worrying what either of his parents would think. But he winced as he was hit in the face by another bunch of mistletoe as he weaved through the crowd – he never seemed able to notice it until he had a mouthful. “Bloody hell, again?” Cheese reared back and swatted it away as he waited impatiently for Brígh and Addy to arrive.

addilyn elara slater
BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH

[addilyn elara slater]

Make believe that I impress

That every word by design
turns a head

December 24, 2026
BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH ,
Raphael Caelan McLaggen

It was strange not being at home, at least the Slater family home. Addy’s room here was tidy as always, a habit from living in the pristine environment her mother had created where one spec of dust dare not enter for fear of her mother. But, it the best part was it felt a bit like the old days in school. They felt so long ago now that she’d forgotten what it was like to find Brigh within a few minutes to talk to her—at least when she was home from training. Their schedules were busy, they were all busy, and their other roommate Irina was also a Cursebreaker and a lovely girl as well.

”I know he wouldn’t miss an opportunity to document a Potter Christmas party.” Though no doubt he had done the same at previous ones. Cheese had shared stories with her on growing up as their neighbors and the chaos of all the Weasleys there at the same time and Penelope’s family as well. She imagined there was enough of them for a few Quidditch teams. Addy followed Brigh out. It had been a while since there had been an occasional to dress up, especially considering how the year had gone, but then she found herself shaking her head. ”Do you really think James wouldn’t have his own stash there?” James might have been closer to Brigh, but everybody knew James. There was no doubt the mischievous eldest Potter would find some way to make the night even more fun.

Addy glanced in the mirror in the hall one last time to make sure nothing was out of place, and she wrapped an arm around Brigh’s. ”You’re going to have to apparate us there. I’ve never been.” She wished she’d had the privilege, but it seemed that she and Dickie were the odd ones out on that front. They apparated, and Addy made sure to have her footing before letting go of Brigh’s arm. She could hear the noise from the house, and people walked past as they lingered outside or went for the door. She pulled out her phone to text Cheese. Wondering if he’d even left his house yet.

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[BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH]

Brígh looked at Addy in consideration for a moment, before shrugging in agreement. "Suppose you're right," she said turning back to her reflection. She tilted her head this way and that, studying her face from all angles. Not like it mattered much - Aidan wouldn't be present, and he was the only one she really cared to look good for. Well, maybe that was a bit of a lie. Perhaps she wanted to remind Albus what he had missed out on. Her cheeks flushed as she got to her feet, flicking her hair over her shoulder imperiously as she addressed her best friend.

Addy moving in had been a dream. Brígh had missed having her at a moments notice, and letters and text messages just hadn't cut it. Despite the fact that they'd been in the same city. Even now, Addy and Brígh could continue their plotting and reign of terror, or so Dicky had once called it. Brígh voiced an errant thought about whether she could sneak in firewhisky or not. "Also true," she decided with a nod. James was a good friend - almost like another brother. And as her friend, he was also privy to her vices, and matched them with her own. "But what if Lily gets to the punch first and fills it with something vile like... like U-NO-POO or something like that," she added after a moment. She'd grown increasingly fond of the only daughter of Harry Potter, especially after having a breakthrough with her shortly after her return to Hogwarts.

"How ..? No. No matter. Let's go," said Brígh, shaking her head and taking Addy's arm. She thought determinedly of the Potter residence, and the pair popped into existence on the doorstep. The house was tastefully decorated on the outside, and the girls could hear the music and laughter of many guests inside. Addy disentangled herself from Brígh, who sashayed up to the door. She glanced back at Addy, who had pulled her phone out. "Put that rubbish away, he'll be here when he gets here," she chided, twisting the handle of the door and opening it.

The inside of the Potter home was lavishly decorated with faeries, holly, ribbons and more - but it wasn't garish. Platters of food drifted past, carried by nothing but magic. Glasses of wine, flagons of butterbeer, goblets of pumpkin juice and measures of firewhisky hovered around the walls of the room, well out of the way of spilling potential. Of course, if this had been Brígh's first invitation to the party, she would have been awed by the effort put in by Ginny Weasley. But she was an old hat here, and was instantly greeting James and Lily, squeezing the siblings with a tight embrace. She turned to Addy, beaming. "Marvellous, isn't it? Oh, there's Cheese," said Brígh, waving him down. "Cheese! Oh blimey, mistletoe. Addy, I'll let you do the honours. Have you been here long? Why are you hiding behind your camera, you should be making friends, you nonce." Brígh said all of this very quickly as she greeted Cheese with a hug before stepping back to let Addy at her boyfriend.

Raphael Caelan McLaggen
addilyn elara slater

[addilyn elara slater]

Make believe that I impress

That every word by design
turns a head

December 24, 2026
BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH ,
Raphael Caelan McLaggen

Addy furrowed her brow at the thought of such a prank by Lily, though it was not out of the realm of possibility by any means. She only hoped James got to it first with the firewhiskey. Addy would have much preferred that, if anything. When they arrived, and Addy checked her phone, she didn’t note any messages from him, which meant that he likely could have forgotten his phone in favor of his camera again. It wouldn’t have been the first time. Addy put her phone away with a sigh as Brigh walked forward toward the door. While his preference over his camera wasn’t so much an issue during school, it was different when they lived so far from one another.

Following Brigh through the door, she immediately looked around the Potter residence. It was beautifully decorated, and she made a mental note to introduce herself to James’ parents at some point and give her compliments. James and Lily were near the entrance, and Addy greeted them, spotting other unfamiliar faces, but she greeted them as well. ”Yes it is—“ She began to answer before Brigh whirled around and began waving frantically to Cheese. At the mention of mistletoe Addy’s face with a little pink, but she smiled nonetheless at the sight of him. ”I think he knows almost everyone here.” Addy responded to Brighs’ statement as she hugged him. She stepped forward to give him a quick kiss to greet him but also the mistletoe. ”Hey.” Looking around again, she looked back. ”Have you been here long?”

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[Raphael Caelan McLaggen]

Cheese’s eyes tracked a platter of appetizers as it floated across the room by itself, but he already knew it was a lost cause to try and follow it. He’d never been able to stop one of the plates by himself, and over the years it had become a sort of ‘holy grail’ quest to get his hands on one. Growing up, Mickey had always told him it was because he was too short to be noticed (not that he’d ever done much to help his little brother anyway) and although that excuse wasn’t relevant anymore nothing had changed. So Cheese just swatted at the mistletoe before he got a mouthful of it and brought his camera up to snap a picture of the Stunned gnome that topped the Christmas tree. It always stood out to him as the most unusual feature – these parties were classy, tastefully decorated with a fancy tree and everything except for that one detail. He didn’t know where that came from, but he’d always noticed it growing up.

Brígh’s voice cut through the dim noise of the party like a jinx hitting a training dummy and turning it to dust. Cheese turned to follow the sound of her voice and grinned at the sight of Brígh pushing through the crowd and dragging Addy behind her. But the grin turned into a slight grimace at the sentence that sounded like it could have come straight from his mum (not that Cheese would ever dare to say that to his friend). “People like the camera,” he complained, cradling it to his chest and ignoring the fact that Brígh had just called him a nonce. Addy came to his defense quickly enough, and she was so talented at just getting straight to the point and making excellent arguments that Cheese nodded like a bobblehead. He did in fact know most of the guests here, since they were the exact same people who’d been coming for as long as he could remember. He could tell all the Weasleys apart, recite where to find each Bainbridge in the house off the top of his head, and he could even see the Jordan family had just Apparated onto the threshold which meant there’d be a great deal of fireworks and roaring laughter in a bit -- although as he noticed that the daughter wasn't there either, it finally clicked in his head that it must be the full moon. Bummer.

And hey, he didn’t have a reason to complain about the mistletoe anymore. Rafe grinned at Addy and bent down so he could kiss her. “Oh yeah, ages,” Rafe agreed with a note of pride in his voice as he puffed up his chest at the fact that he’d beaten the girls here by quite a bit. That never happened, so he intended to enjoy it while it lasted. “And two of the Potter kids already started pulling Christmas crackers. D’you see James's new hat?” It was one of those traditions that Rafe had only ever gotten to do at home, and the McLaggens took the competition seriously. Facing off against his dad and older brother – Cheese couldn’t say he’d ever stood a chance. He was looking forward to facing less intense opponents this year, although knowing what he did about Addy and Brígh…maybe he’d better find Penelope for that.

BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH
addilyn elara slater

[BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH]

The moment Brígh and Addy stepped through the threshold, Brígh was talking a mile a minute. She spotted Cheese almost at once, pointing him out to her best friend in the crowd though she was sure Addy had seen him anyways. Her eyes had always been almost magnetised to him - or maybe it was the camera? No, it was definitely Cheese. Brígh was grateful that their relationship hadn't messed up the vibe of their trio at all, as they were so busy with their own lives, they barely had time to miss one another.

Brígh made an immediate complaint about the camera, though she knew it was practically an extension of Cheese. Sort of like a personality trait. Tall, and photographer. Brígh knew there was much more to him than that - he was kind and loyal and faithful, and protective of the girls even if they were much more fighters than he. But Brígh also knew that few people looked past those first few things to see the real Cheese. "People pretend to like the camera because you look ridiculous when you're upset," said Brígh with a wink. She didn't deign to comment on their chaste kiss, be it for greeting or for misletoe, but the offending plant drifted off to plague some other unwitting party guest.

With eyes like a hawk, Brígh looked around. She could see that Vivian had just arrived, and knew that she and Lily would surely get up to no good. Brígh was half tempted to join them, if only to give Cheese and Addy some alone time. Later, though. She hadn't caught up with Cheese in far too long. She looped an arm around his middle, resting her head against his shoulder as the pair of them appraised Addy. "I totally know you're lying, by the way. There's no way you've been here ages. We're not even that late," Brígh pointed out. She craned her neck to try and spot Lily's new hat. "Did they get the ones with the mice? I swear, the neighbourhood cats will be so delighted. Where can we find some?" asked Brígh, looking around. She spotted a towering pile of crackers before, and dashed off to collect a few, returning shortly afterwards. Her energy was unbounded, her smile unbridled, and she looked rather mad. "Ready?" She handed one end to Cheese and one end to Addy. "Pull!"

addilyn elara slater
Raphael Caelan McLaggen

[addilyn elara slater]

Make believe that I impress

That every word by design
turns a head

December 24, 2026
BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH ,
Raphael Caelan McLaggen

Addy always shook her head slightly at the defensiveness at which Cheese would defend his photography. Brígh was always lived in the moment and savored it, while Cheese would instead remember it in a picture. Addy supposed she was always focused on the moments in the future. But times must have been really changing for Cheese to have arrived anywhere before the girls, especially Addy. Had she really lost track of time? No, she’d been waiting on Brígh. Yes, Brígh had made them late. But Addy didn’t immediately defend him against Brígh’s next point. He did tend to get mopey when his camera wasn’t in his hand. She lightly shrugged in agreement.

”Maybe it should have been you and that camera under the mistletoe.” Addy joked with a chuckle. Even Addy doubted that he’d been here that long, but he did have an advantage that they didn’t have. ”Well not all of us are neighbors with the Potters.” A tray floated by, and Addy saw it out of the corner of her eye. She was tempted to grab one but then remembered Brígh’s comment about Lily. Still, it wouldn’t have mattered since it was the full moon that night. Addy had never attended a Potter event before, while Cheese had grown up around all this—which reminded her. ”Is Eggy here?” Brígh had run off to grab crackers for them and returned quickly.

Determined to have fun and make the most of their time together before they all were busy adults again, Addy grabbed the other end and pulled. Considering where they were, she wondered if all of these were filled with some Weasley Wizard Wheezes’ product or some other kind of prank. But as the material tore, made its typical loud noise, and Addy grabbed it by the middle to look inside, she only saw a roll of parchment aside from the paper crown. Unrolling it, she read the simple script, ”What do you call two Quidditch players who share a dorm?” Addy paused, glancing up at the other two and giving them a chance to guess. Though since it related to Quidditch—her eyes naturally lingered on her boyfriend.

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[Raphael Caelan McLaggen]

Cheese was ready to launch into an impassioned speech in defense of his camera – one of the only things he got worked up about, really – but he caught Addy’s eye and decided not to push it any further. Her joke sounded innocent enough, and maybe for Brígh it would be just the encouragement she needed to continue prodding at him and making fun of his 'obsession'. But Cheese’s quality time with his girlfriend was seriously limited these days, and she’d already made a sideways comment or two about how he spent more time with his camera than her whenever they were together. And they’d had a small tiff about it once when tempers had been running high, and he really didn’t want to accidentally wander into another fight on Christmas Eve. So Cheese slowly lowered the camera and let it hang loosely in his hand, even if he did it with a grimace that looked like Brígh had just force-fed him doxy eggs. “Maybe I can lay off for the night,” he acknowledged, “As long as we get a selfie by the tree later?”

That was the best compromise he could offer, and Rafe swallowed slightly at the pressure that was building in his head at the thought of not taking any more photos for the night. Instead he let Brígh pull him in for a sideways hug and squeezed slightly. “I’m a changed man, Red,” he said wisely, “But never mind that. How’s Egypt been? It’s bonkers to think of you with, er, pyramids and mummies and all that.” That was so perfectly Brígh though and he could picture her now – complaining about sand in her boots (it truly got everywhere) and talking the ear off senior cursebreakers while she demanded tips and tricks and mind-boggling stories from them. She could find a way to get comfortable anywhere, although naturally he liked it more whenever she found her way back to London and the trio. He only shrugged at her question about the crackers, because while some people were probably just here to ogle the Potters – well, Cheese had never gotten too close. He’d watched Harry Potter and his dad argue about Quidditch plays enough for a lifetime and even longer.

But at Addy’s question, Cheese nodded his head like a bobble-head – eager to keep the mood light and all. His tone was thoughtful as he said, “Yeah, although she’s probably snuck into the kitchen by now to watch how the food’s prepped. We used to do that together.” Oh to be six years old again and huddled on the floor of the kitchen, eyes shut tightly and trying to summon magic from inside to make the trays float. He was startled out of that thought as Brígh suddenly shoved something into his hands and ordered him to pull. Cheese obeyed on instinct but watched with disappointment as Addy ended up with the prize. Bloody hell, he really was terrible with the crackers. “Broom-mates,” he answered sadly, having already heard the joke a million and one times from his Quidditch-obsessed siblings. He'd probably heard every joke on the planet if it was somehow related to Quidditch. “Can I have the crown? Mickey never let me wear it.” Cheese shot Addy the best begging eyes he could muster. It didn't look like much, but it usually transformed once someone put it on -- or set itself on fire, but that was a risk he was willing to take. He'd always been so jealous of his older brother, holding the crown over his head before crowning himself as the winner.

BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH
addilyn elara slater

[BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH]

Brígh snorted at Addy's observation that Cheese ought to have kissed his camera under the mistletoe. "Not like he needs mistletoe for that, hey?" said Brígh cheekily, giving Cheese a nudge in the ribs. But to her immense surprise, Cheese lowered the camera. Brígh gaped at him, unable to even come up with a clever comeback. She just stared at him in silence for a full minute. "Yeah, alright," she acquiesced at last. She looped her arms through both her best friends', steering them towards the drinks. She was waylaid by the mention of Christmas crackers, and quickly sourced three of them.

At Brígh's signal, the three of them pulled and mercifully each of them got the proper halves. Brígh's exploded with the force of a cannon, and a trio of fat, white mice scuttled around the ground before disappearing between the many pairs of legs. A glittering paper crown drifted out, and Brígh dutifully handed it to Cheese. "Your highness," said Brígh, giving him a curtsey before dissolving into giggles. Addy read out her joke and Brígh bounced up and down, blurting out her response before Cheese had the chance to. "Oh I know, Addy and Cheese!" she chirped, giving her friends a fiendish look. But Cheese sucked the fun out of the moment by answering the riddle correctly. "Spoilsport," muttered Brígh, but she grinned all the same.

"What do you think we'll get for Christmas this year?" asked Brígh, diffusing the tension that rose with Cheese's response to the riddle. "I'm hoping for a new set of enchanted boots. The bloody sand in Egypt just has this special way of getting in no matter how hard I try to keep it out," she rattled on, glancing down at her feet that were ensconced in a cute pair of strappy heels rather than sturdy boots. "Addy, will you get that new phone that was released?" asked Brígh, knowing already that Cheese would respond with some bit about his camera.

addilyn elara slater
Raphael Caelan McLaggen

[addilyn elara slater]

Make believe that I impress

That every word by design
turns a head

December 24, 2026
BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH ,
Raphael Caelan McLaggen

Brigh quickly laughed at her comment, and she’d said it without really thinking. It wasn’t very different from the jokes they made in their school days, but Addy didn’t dwell on the thought. If she had, she’d feel that strange pang in her chest. They both were working quite a bit, it was the life of being new to their respective industries, and Addy would look forward to their time together. She missed being able to just see him at every meal or in the library to work on their assignments or just when they had free time. There had definitely been an argument where Addy had uncharacteristically lost her composure when she felt he couldn’t put down his camera for more than a moment when she was there.

The look on his face let Addy know her remark had been understood, and she glanced at him before looking away. It was Christmas, and she didn’t want to fight, nor did she want to explain to Brigh what that was about. It wasn't the time or place. But Cheese timidly asked for a selfie of all of them later. Addy looked back, her expression had softened, and she grinned. ”Of course. Its tradition.” They had pictures of the trio beginning with their first year, and Addy saw no reason to stop that now. Addy managed to get the prize from the cracker, but they individually had different effects. She always found them fun, though she immediately thought of the mess. Her mother had never liked these.

Addy smiled at the paper crown on her boyfriend’s head as Brigh dramatically curtsied. ”Very handsome.” Addy remarked, giving him a light kiss on the cheek. She knew what it was like being the youngest, though their siblings were far different. Cheese answered her riddle quickly though Brigh interjected after that, and Addy had to fight back the blush that crept into her face. Addy shot Brigh a look. In hindsight, it was all a good story, perhaps. But at the moment, it had all felt rather daunting. ”I hope so, I was researching the new features, but I wouldn’t mind some new tools for work.” She’d happily brought her small toolset from home that her sister had bought her years before but so much went through that department that many tools were now mainly broken. Though the rate at which the technology changed also simply required new tools. She sipped her drink. ”I’d think you’d want something for the heat.” Sand seemed far less annoying than possible heatstroke.

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[Raphael Caelan McLaggen]

Cheese crowned himself triumphantly as Brígh handed him the paper crown and let the mice scurry off into the crowd. A few squeals let him know where they’d gone, although Cheese found himself more preoccupied with the unholy amount of confetti that had settled into his hair like he’d suddenly grown wild rainbow extensions. There was a look of intense concentration on his face as he pulled an endless amount off, although he finally found himself with two fistfuls – more than enough to dump on Brígh in one go. “Orange is definitely your color,” he said with a teasing grin as he moved sideways defensively before Brígh could take revenge on him. Somehow Addy ended up between the two, although he would swear up and down that it was only a coincidence. He definitely didn’t use his girlfriend as a human shield against the human bludger.

He winced at his impulse to answer the riddle right. Merlin, what was Addy doing to him? He’d first noticed it when he’d mentioned Colour-Change Charms to Penelope during one of their baking sessions. Because look, he was a good boy. He didn’t pay that much attention in class, and certainly didn’t volunteer to do his homework the night before it was due. But Addy was making him more studious, and it was definitely all her fault. Still, he found himself grinning as she kissed him on the cheek, and he pulled a second paper crown from a discarded cracker. “And for my queen,” he said as he put the crown lopsided on her blonde curls. She wouldn’t be able to resist the crooked crown and Cheese predicted a maximum of thirty seconds before she fixed it.

“I want some new memory cards. Oh! And a tripod,” Cheese said with a dreamy sigh at Brígh’s question. He loved his film cameras, but going digital had literally changed his life. He’d been ogling different camera accessories in the windows of Muggle stores for ages now, and Cheese had barely been able to stop himself from impulse-buying a camera strap with little flamingos on it. He rolled his eyes as the girls began to debate what Brígh should want and/or get for Christmas. Addy was the ever practical one, although sun cream sounded easier to get than whatever fanciful enchanted boots Brígh was picturing. And there was a look of complete innocence on his face as Addy began to speculate about hers. Unfortunately, Cheese wasn’t made of money and buying her a new phone was out of the question. But she’d talked his ear off about the tools she used at the Ministry and he’d even gotten a good look at her toolkit a few times while she’d been sleeping. If Addy didn’t love the completely sensible and practical gifts he’d gotten her, then he'd eat the gnome angel at the top of the tree. “Maybe she’ll get a heavy bat,” Cheese speculated about Brígh’s gift, “I’d like to see a mummy try and jump her with that.”

BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH
addilyn elara slater

[BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH]

Though Addy and Cheese had been her best friends for years, sometimes it was difficult for Brígh to be with them when they were disgustingly romantic like this. She couldn't help the grimace as Cheese placed a crown on Addy's head, calling her his queen. "You two make me nauseous," she said, miming herself projectile vomiting. She asked blithely what the pair of them wanted for Christmas, figuring Addy would reply with the new phone that had just come out and Cheese something to do with his camera. She was, of course, correct on both accounts.

Holding out the palm of her hand, she shoved it under the noses of her friends. "Can palmistry make you a genius or do I just know the pair of you too well?" asked Brígh with a triumphant grin. "Well, see the heat I can manage just fine. Those caves and crypts are shockingly chilly. Maybe it's the being surrounded by dead people thing," said Brígh thoughtfully. "But I suppose I could do with a stronger sun cream of sorts. The spells and regular stuff aren't quite cutting it, see?" Brígh shifted her dress and revealed a bright red spot across her collar bone and shoulder. "No mas," she added.

Chuckling at Cheese's suggestion of a bat, Brígh waved a flippant hand. "Could do. Or I could take up taekwondo. You'd both obviously have to come with me," she mused, her gaze darting between them. "Imagine. Roundhouse kicking a mummy so hard their head falls off. Or punching one of the other annoying ministry interns. I wouldn't blame you if you had a go at Forrester," said Brígh with relish, beaming at the image she conjured up of Addy taking on the former Slytherin. "Cheese, obviously you'd need to be there to film that," she pointed out.

Raphael Caelan McLaggen
addilyn elara slater

[addilyn elara slater]

Make believe that I impress

That every word by design
turns a head

December 24, 2026
BRÍGH ENNIS O'DALAIGH ,
Raphael Caelan McLaggen

Cheese dumped a lot of confetti on Brigh, and Addy just shook her head. Watching the interactions made her miss everything. And to think that seventh year had felt like too much to handle. The stress of homework, classes, figuring out career prospects, and then adding hormones into the mix didn’t compare to real life. But under the crown atop Cheese’s head, confetti had also settled into the waves and curls. Addy didn’t doubt this slightly magical confetti would keep appearing until next summer. But Cheese knew what he was doing as suddenly he moved to her other side, and she gave him a sideways, knowing glance. Then again, after all the work Brigh had put into pushing them together, Addy doubted she would take that much revenge on him.

But soon, there was a matching crown on Addy’s head, though she could immediately feel it wasn’t placed correctly. Without hesitation, she corrected it. It would have fallen off otherwise, all while rolling her eyes at Brigh’s comment. ”And here I thought you were our biggest champion.” So many tense moments over this fact and even an assault involving a textbook. Unsurprisingly, Cheese rattled off many photography-related items that were on his wishlist. All items that Addy had mentally cataloged over time as possible presents. But then Brigh began telling of her experiences with training. And she did have a bit of a tan, though any one of them would have easily burned in the desert sun.

Addy was about to protest coming along for Cursebreaker training, but then her suggestion made her pause and seriously consider it for exactly one second. She scowled. ”Thank Merlin, he’s on a different floor.” The boy was insufferable and far too arrogant for his own good. As if he had no sense of where he actually stood in life and simply wanted to prove otherwise through snarky comments and logic. ”Tell us more about your training. Have they made you travel anywhere else?” Addy was curious to hear about it. She’d only read about these things in books and whatever stories her professors had to share.

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