Paper Hearts [Albus]

[Deleted]

The last week had been.... rough. It had all started on a high, that night on the Knight Bus with Albus. While she'd been on cloud nine, her parents, particularly her mother had been less thrilled. She hadn't told her parents about Albus though. She'd told them she was at Raleigh's. Her mother hadn't taken the news well... Dusti was used to it though, and when her mother's tight leash on her finally loosened Dusti managed to send a letter to Albus asking him to meet her at a park near his house that evening. She didn't disclose why she'd been completely missing for the past week, or what had happened, just asked him to meet her.

Dusti had gotten there early. In fact, she hadn't been home since she sent that letter. She was sure her parents wouldn't notice though. Her father had been spending a lot of time with River as of late, and Dusti had ordered one of the house elves to leave out several bottles of strong alcohol out to keep her mother distracted. She wouldn't be sober enough to notice her oldest daughter's absence. It was already dark, and Dusti was the only one on the playground, swinging lightly on one of the swings.

@al

[Deleted]

@dusti

dusti's letter. it had been the first contact the two of them had had since they had gotten lost in scotland. he himself had received the third degree and hadn't been allowed out of the house for a few days. though that was over now thank merlin. he told his mom he was leaving the house this time. with strict instructions to be back at a certain time. he told her he'd try. and try he would. but when he was with dusti he wasn't going to try very hard. he grabbed his jacket and pulled it over his shoulders, grabbed a set of keys from the bowl and tucked the letter in his pocket as he left the house. he made his way to the park where dusti was waiting. he smiled slightly when he saw her, sitting on the swings. he tucked his hands into his pockets and crossed the slightly damp grass to where she was. "dusti" he said softly as he looked down at her, his eyes drawn to something dark on the side of her face. he frowned a little and shifted his green gaze from her cheek to her eyes. "are you okay?"

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Dusti, for a moment, had forgotten about the bruises. In fact she forgot everything when she saw Albus. Even in the poorly lit park she'd recognize him anywhere. "Hey, Al." she greeted as he approached, getting off the swing as he stopped in front of her. She was smiling, up until his eyes moved to her cheek, then her eyes and posed that question. Her expression went deathly still for a moment as she was brought back to reality.

Her mother was an angry drunk. Usually Dusti just avoided her mother all together, ever since she was a child. She and her mother had always had a.... difficult relationship. That wasn't saying she had a good relationship with her father, she hated him too. Pansy was just hated far, far more. And she was the source of the latest bruises Dusti was sporting. "It's nothing." she quickly responded as she moved her head just enough to make it harder to see the bruise on her cheek. "How have you been?" she asked, attempting to change the subject before he investigated further.

@al

[Deleted]

@dusti

"It's nothing." he doubted that. he doubted it was nothing and he didn't want to let it go but he knew better than to push dusti. she was like him, if she didn't want to talk she wouldn't and she'd put walls up so fast it would make his head spin. he touched her chin gently, moving to lean down to kiss her cheek softly. "okay. for now, it's nothing" he said, though every thing in his body was wanting to go and find who had hurt her. "How have you been?" he shrugged a little as he took her hand from her chin and smiled slightly. things were okay. his parents were all good, still planning their wedding renewal, lily was spending a lot of time away from home and he wasn't sure who with .. but he was going to find out at some point. he worried it was a boy, that didn't bode well for the boy if it was so .. lily had two older brothers who didn't like the idea of her dating. him and james was the biggest thing though, they were moving forward with their getting along, it was going to take a long time to get back to how they were before they had both gone off to school, but it was progress. which was good. "they've been okay. you know, same old same old" he said as he moved to take a seat on one of the swings and reached forward to take her hand to tug her back down onto his lap. "let's not bore each other with family talk though" he said as he leaned his shoulder against the chain of the swing.

[Deleted]

For now, it’s nothing. That’s what he said. He knew she was lying, but he wasn’t going to push her about it right now. She didn’t ever want to talk about it, to be honest. It was her problem, not his or anyone else’s. She didn’t need their help. She’d done just fine protecting herself, and getting through it on her own all these years. She was Rusti’s support when things got rough, not the other way. She didn’t need people to worry about her. Her small smile came back as he kissed her cheek and, at least for now, dropped it.

As strange as it sounded, Albus was the more affectionate of the two. While they were both introverts, with a nasty habit of shutting people out at a moments notice, Albus was at least more welcoming when it came to physical contact. But, considering her family situation, could you blame her for not liking people touching her? At home, being ‘touched’ meant hit by one of her parents. While she didn’t flinch, she also didn’t lean into him immediately. It took Dusti a moment to relax and let Albus pull her onto his lap. ”We can talk about you then. You didn’t get in too much trouble last week, did you?” She took a slow breath, before shifting so she could lean against him as he leaned against the swing, her head propped against the chain his shoulder was resting again.

@al

[Deleted]

@dusti

”We can talk about you then. You didn’t get in too much trouble last week, did you?” he'd wrapped his arms around her as she'd settled in his lap and he smiled slightly, he shifted his feet slightly so the swing moved back and forth a little. he hadn't gotten into that much trouble. he knew it could have been a lot worse but he'd hated it all the same. it had meant that he hadn't been able to see her. he wondered when his parents were going to let go a little. he'd been gone one night. it wasn't like he'd vanished without a .. okay he kind of had. but it wasn't like he'd gotten himself killed. "not really. but my dad's getting soft in his old age" he said with a small smile. he wasn't going to ask her how her parents had reacted because he was fairly certain it had something to do with her eye and he'd told her that he'd let it go for now.

[Deleted]

It was.... strange. Sitting here in Albus' lap. A good strange though. It made her feel.... exposed. That was a very strange feeling, something she'd never really felt. Even with her friends, she'd never been completely carefree, totally unguarded. So.... vulnerable. She'd never let herself be in this sort of situation. Never trusted anyone enough. So why was she now? Why was Albus so.... different? She'd always found it hard to keep him out, to keep him at arm's length like everyone else. He just had a way of sneaking past all her defenses. The strangest part though? She.... liked it.

Her legs tangled with his as they slowly swayed on the swing. "Well, I'm glad they went easy on you then. Otherwise getting you out of the house would have been a lot harder." She teased lightly, smiling.

@al

[Deleted]

@dusti

"Well, I'm glad they went easy on you then. Otherwise getting you out of the house would have been a lot harder." he chuckled as they sat there on the swing. it was nice as the sun started to finish setting behind them, the air still warm as the final days of summer were starting to dawn upon them. he didn't want the summer to end. it would mean school and classes and while he was looking forward to be able to see dusti everyday and spend a whole lot more time with her, he wasn't sure how much he was going to enjoy school this year. it was his last one, when it was over that was it, no more school. he didn't know if that was a good thing. "nah .. there are ways of getting in and out." he said with a smile as he leaned his chin on her shoulder and tightened his arms around her waist slightly, moving to try and pull her closer to his chest. "want to go get something to eat?"

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"I didn't say it'd be impossible.. Just harder." Dusti teased. Her arms had found their way around his own waist by this point, She brought one of them away from his waist though to run her fingers through his short hair, a few of the strands sticking out. One satisfied, her hand returned to it's spot around his waist once more. Though he suggested food, he also tightened his own grip in the same moment. Dusti could help but smirk a little. "You know, if you want to get something to eat, you have to let go of me at least a little..." She suggested, though it wasn't really much of one. She sounded perfectly content sitting here, on Albus' lap with their limbs tangled together in such a way that she wasn't really sure who's was who's anymore. Though food did sound good too... Meals were rather rigorous at the Flint house. The house elves wouldn't fix anything unless it was on her father's orders. The kids were permitted to go into the kitchen to fix their own food but..... Well, Dusti didn't handle kitchens very well. Basically she'd left before her father had permitted dinner to be served. Now that she thought about it, Albus still had no idea that she had a phobia of kitchens. It had never come up in their six years of knowing each other, and even when she'd fainted last spring she hadn't told him why. "Have anywhere in mind?"

@al

[Deleted]

@dusti

"You know, if you want to get something to eat, you have to let go of me at least a little..." he smirked and raised his brow a little. he didn't have to let go of her. that was a matter of opinion. though he did realize it would make thing difficult but hey, he was willing to try it if she was. "say's who" he said as he leaned his head forward to nuzzle his nose against her neck lightly as his arms stayed around her waist. he didn't want to let her go, he never would. it was like once his arms had felt her in them once it was all they craved. "Have anywhere in mind?" he shook his head slightly as he pulled his head back from her neck and looked into her face. he didn't have anything in particular he wanted, he was just hungry. he looked over his shoulder toward the center of the town they had met in and shrugged. "walk till we find something?" he asked as he looked back at her, taking one of his arms from her waist and held it to her to hold, so they could actually get up and walk.

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Dusti smirked at his 'Says who?' comment. He'd said it so matter of factly. So... like himself. And then he was nuzzling her neck ever so softly. Dusti couldn't help but let out a quiet sigh. It was, in some ways, strange to be in this position with Albus. They'd been friends for years. Good friends. He was one of the only people she'd ever told about the abuse going on in her family (well.... Some of it. He still didn't know about the actual incidents. Especially the kitchen. Somehow during their six years of friendship she'd managed to keep her phobia and scars a secret.). She'd never thought she might... well like him more then just a friend. At least, until he'd been hurt in that explosion. She'd realized then how much she really liked him. And the fact that he was returning her feelings? Well, that was the strangest, but most amazing sensations.

So, when he pulled back and looked at her, Dusti didn't even hesitate to quickly lean forward and kiss him softly. "Sounds great." Unwrapping her arms from around his waist and untangling her legs from his, she took his offered hand and, reluctantly, got up. She didn't let go of his hand as she stood to took a step back. Either he'd stand on his own, or he'd let her pull him to his feet. " Are there any Chinese food restaurants nearby?" She wasn't that familiar with Albus' home city, but for some reason, Chinese sounded pretty good.

@al

[Deleted]

@dusti

"Sounds great." he groaned in protest when she took her arms from his waist and let a pout fall onto his face. he wanted food that's for sure, but he wanted her back in his lap a hell of a lot more. he'd never thought of himself as affectionate before, he hadn't been when he'd been in relationships but with dusti it was different. which made it all the more weird because she was about as affectionate as he was. he closed his hand around hers when she took his hand and tried to link their fingers together as he let her pull him up from swing. "Are there any Chinese food restaurants nearby?" there was and it was pretty good, not very common in the potter house but they'd had it a few times. "yeah one" he said as he tugged on her hand lightly to pull her back against his side as he started in the direction of the chinese restaurant.

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Dusti saw that pout and smirked just a little. She'd been reluctant to let go, but he looked even more put out then her. She'd never have thought he'd be this physically affectionate in a relationship. She'd seen him date plenty during their years of friendship, and he'd been more affectionate then he normally was, but never to this degree. The thought he was different with her made her heart flutter ever so slightly. "You're the one that suggested it, so you don't need to look like you're being punished, Al." she teased lightly.

Even as they walked, he didn't seem to want her that far, lacing his fingers with her own tightly and pulling her close to him. She didn't fight it, falling into step next to him and sticking be close. "What do you think is going to happen this year?" she asked absentmindedly. She was referring to the events of last year. Would it be the same this? Would it be worse? What was going to happen? Dusti was one of the most neutral people you'd ever meet when it came to such events. She kept her nose out and stayed it if the way, as Al knew. But she had a feeling this year would finally force her involvement.

@al

[Deleted]

@dusti

"You're the one that suggested it, so you don't need to look like you're being punished, Al." he rolled his eyed a little as she said that. it was true but she didn't need to point it out to him. he stuck his tongue out at her for a second and smiled slightly. "i clearly didn't think it through then did i" he said in response as they walked toward the chinese place. "What do you think is going to happen this year?" he shrugged lightly. he wasn't sure but he was somewhat hopeful they would be better prepared for it, more on alert and the adults in their lives would stop sticking their heads in the sand that something was seriously wrong. "i'm not sure. but i know we'll be okay" he said as he looked down at her. he knew they'd be fine, they'd make it through whatever was thrown at them.

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Dusti snickered a little as he admitted he didn't think that whole thing through. Leaning in as they walked, she planted a quick kiss on his cheek. "No, you didn't." They kept walking, Dusti letting him lead. She actually didn't know Godric's Hollow that well. Heck, she didn't even know the neighborhood her family's manor was on that well. Her mother has strict rules about that when they were little. Dusti and Rusti were supposed to be the prim and proper Flint princesses, and playing outside? That was far from prim and proper. Thankfully Dusti had never been very compliant with that rule, or most others. So while Rusti didn't get out much because she followed the rules, Dusti didn't get out because she broke them too often...

She raised an eyebrow as he said they'd be okay. "Do you mean everyone, or us?" She smiled then. Even while looking at him she'd made her to keep her head turned just enough to keep the bruise on her cheek hidden. Thankfully that was the only visible bruise. And thankfully she was so used to having them that she hardly felt them anymore. years of abuse had given Dusti a high pain tolerance. "I wouldn't mind if you meant us." She added.

@al