Ghosts of the Past (Cyrus)

[Deleted]

It was a typical start to a morning for Eleanor Percival. She woke up, got breakfast with her flatmate at their favorite cafe, and she Apparated to work. Work had been insanely busy since the beginning of the summer with the Triwizard Tournament being played out at Hogwarts again. Ella had been too young when the last Tournament had gone on, but she remembered being incredibly jealous of hearing the stories about the different tasks set by the committee, a committee she was now a part of. There was a brief lull this week thankfully; the announcement of the Tournament had taken place and the Goblet of Fire had stopped taking names, yet the champions were due to be announced in a few weeks time. Then the ideas the committee had set for the First Task would start to be executed, and all the fine details would be ironed out before the November task.

Ella had decided to take lunch out in the Muggle world, partly because she was craving a good fish and chips from the Tower of London food truck, and partly because she was trying to avoid Nate. Nate was a good man, and a good boyfriend, but working with him all the time had made her start to resent their relationship. Plus, there was something missing, something Ella couldn’t put her finger on. Of course, if she was honest with herself, she could easily admit what was missing: Cyrus. Nate just wasn’t Cyrus, and there was nothing he could do to match up to Ella’s Hogwarts boyfriend. She hadn’t seen Cy in over three years; they had been busy of course with him playing Quidditch in Northern England and Ella bouncing up the Ministry career ladder. Though she would deny it, the Slytherin was never far from her thoughts.

Walking down towards the food trucks by the Thames, Ella felt her cell phone vibrate from an incoming call. She only had the phone to contact her family; being Muggles, they still preferred communication via the telephone. She looked down and saw it was a call from her mother. “Hi Mum,” she said into the phone, a small smile playing at her lips. Her mother always knew when she’d take her lunch breaks and would call to chat a little about anything upcoming in their lives. “Yes, I’ll be there for Sunday roast, and yes Nate is coming too,” she said, unable to help herself from rolling her eyes. “Alright Mum I’ve got to go I’m about to order my lunch, I love you!” she hit the ‘end’ button on the phone and shook her head, scoffing a little. Her mother loved Nate, probably more than she did at this point. She had also conveniently forgotten to tell him about Sunday roast; she supposed she’d have to do that when she got back. Grimacing at the prospect, she looked up to find where the food truck was located that day, and stopped dead in her tracks. In front of her was someone that sent a shiver down her spine; her lips parted in an 'o' shape before she could stop herself, but she didn’t speak, not yet. It was like seeing him again for the first time in his Quidditch uniform their third year.

Cyrus.

@cyrus

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Days back in London were always brilliant. Cyrus had a pretty busy schedule with Quidditch, though with the school starting back up things had temporarily slowed down due to the announcement of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. When Cyrus had read in the Prophet about the tournament, he had thanked his lucky stars that Claiborne, his younger sister, was not old enough to enter. As if he needed another thing to worry about with her being away from him and at school, especially after last year.

Cyrus had just left his parents' house, though he found that he was still rather hungry after breakfast earlier that day. So as the Quidditch player walked along, he searched for the nearest food cart to satisfy the grumbling in his stomach. It was a fairly nice day, so Cyrus decided to pace himself in his walk to enjoy the weather. He was doing just that when he set sights on the food cart. He began to head toward it and as he neared it, that was when he saw her. For a moment, Cy almost continued walking. But then he did a double take. It was Eleanor.

Cy stood there, dead in his tracks, completely at a loss for words. His lips parted as if he was about to speak but nothing came out. She was... more beautiful than the day he had last seen her. And standing there in front of her, it felt like he had just seen her again for the first time back when he was thirteen. Though this tme, he was much more speechless.

It took a good minute or two before Cyrus's legs finally listened to his head and they began to slowly move forward toward Eleanor. As he did so, the smallest smile slowly crept up on his face as he was unable to help himself at the sight of Eleanor. "Ella? It's... it's been too long," he finally said, leaving a foot or two so of room between the two of them.

@eleanor

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Cyrus spoke first, closing the gap between them slowly.  He said her name and Ella just wanted to melt back into his arms.  It had been too long, far too long.  Busy schedules or not, seeing him standing in front of her made her realize just how much she missed him.  "Yes...three years this November," she said quietly, a small smile coming to her lips.  She didn't want to smile; she shouldn't.  She had Nate to think about, but right now he was the furthest thing from her mind.  So many things she wanted to say were crossing through her brain right now.  "My mum was just on the phone, we still have Sunday roasts."  Was what she ended up saying.  Not the smoothest line she'd ever come up with but she blamed it on the shock.

Soon she regained her composure and cleared her throat.  "I've read that you had a good season so far.  My colleague is a big Arrows fan so she keeps me informed," she told him.  She didn't need to add that the superfan was her.  "I got selected for the committee to create the tasks for this years Triwizard Tournament, so work has been maddeningly crazy, but exciting of course," she added, trying to sound casual while trying to will her legs from shaking.  He was still so handsome; even more so with a few years of professional Quidditch behind him.  "What brings you to London?" she asked, trying to make conversation that didn't end in 'why haven't you written?'  She wasn't sure she wanted to know the reason why he'd stopped writing.

@cyrus

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Three years. Even though it had easily been the longest, most grueling three years of Cyrus's life, he couldn't help the widening of his smile when Eleanor finally spoke. Cyrus twitched, fighting back the instinct he had to bridge the gap between them and wrap his arms around her. "Yeah..." Was all he managed to get out, for some reason. When Eleanor mentioned the famed Percival Sunday roasts, Cyrus raised his eyebrows interestedly. "Oh, really?" He asked, his voice perked up in enthusiasm. Cyrus had attended several roasts over the summers with Eleanor and he had to admit, he quite missed them. Eleanor's muggle family had always interested Cyrus.

"Oh?" Cyrus nodded slowly, really rather pleased that Eleanor had read about he and his team. "Yeah, yeah... we have had a good season. Our best in a while, at least," he said through his small smile. Cyrus could remember hearing that Eleanor, naturally, ended up working for the Ministry. The Department for Magical Games and Sports, if he remembered correctly. As she went on to explain she had been chosen to help with the tasks for the tournament, Cy's eyes widened slightly in awe. "Wow," he breathed. "I bet. I can't explain to you how happy I am Claiborne can't enter." He shook his head, letting out a relieved sigh.

What brought him to London? Cyrus's smile widened slightly once more and he shrugged nonchalantly. "I live here now. I have a flat not far from here," he motioned back in the direction he had come from.

@eleanor

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Eleanor smiled, a full real smile this time at the way Cyrus showed enthusiasm over the Percival Sunday roasts. Ella's parents had simply adored Cyrus; her mother had always fussed about them while her dad and he would engage in lively conversations about Quidditch and soccer.  She knew in her head her mother had started planning their wedding when Ella had turned seventeen; she had been heartbroken to learn they had broken up after graduation.  Ella had tried to put on a brave face after the breakup.  They had wanted different things in different places; Cy in Appleby and Ella down here in London.  But inside?  Inside all she had wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry, alone in a darkened room.  Her mother had tried to get her to talk about things; maybe they could get back together, try long distance?  Her father though, Fletcher Percival had understood.  One day when he was reading in the sitting room not long after their breakup, Ella had come in and crawled onto his lap like she had when she was little, and he just held her as she sobbed, noisy, heartbroken sobs.  Now, everything was about Nate; what did Nate like to eat, what does Nate's flat look like?  She knew her mother was trying to push away the remnants of Cyrus, but Ella wasn't ready to let them go yet.

"I read about your game against Wimbourne; twenty saves in thirty minutes.  I must say I don't think you were that good at Hogwarts," she said, a teasing lilt in her voice.  The truth was, Cy had always been good, great even.  Ella would always cheer for him in the stands, her voice the loudest of all the Slytherin supporters.  She even had had a tough time rooting for Ravenclaw when they played Slytherin sometimes.  What he said next made her jaw drop open.  Cyrus, living here, in London?  It was too good to be true.  "Oh?" she said, trying to contain her excitement.  Then she remembered; Nate.  Nate existed, and he lived in London too.  Well, obviously he lived in London.  She wondered if there would be enough room for the three of them when Cyrus found out about him.  "Where abouts?  I'm in Covent Garden right now," she asked before she could help herself.   She couldn't help it; just being near him again brought her back to when she was seventeen and truly happy with every aspect of her life.

@cyrus

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There it was. The smile Cyrus had fallen so deeply in love with those eight or so years ago. The smile he was certainly still head over heels for today. Agreeing to mutually end things between them had easily been one of the worst mistakes Cyrus had ever made. When they left one another for the final time at King's Cross Station after they had graduated... well, Cyrus was certain he could feel his heart tearing in two. He wasn't sure he would ever get it put back together. Quidditch helped mend that pain, of course. And thank Merlin he had some sort of outlet for that pain. If he hadn't had Quidditch to fall back on, then he probably would have gone mad. After Eleanor, Cy's life became Quidditch, Quidditch, Quidditch. Of course, his mind somehow always found it's way back to Eleanor. Sometimes he even imagined he could hear her voice cheering him on in the crowds like she used to...

Cyrus smiled at Eleanor. "Perhaps I wasn't... I will say, I've gotten much better," he shrugged again, not making any effort to be shy about it. "Guess you'll have to come see a game to find out." He smirked at her, his chin turning up in a bit of a smug way. Cyrus's eyebrows raised in a bit of excitement when Eleanor spilled where she currently lived. "That's fantastic! I have a flat in Soho," he motioned to himself with his hands, excitedly. The prospect of living even that close to Eleanor was practically giving Cyrus butterflies.

@eleanor

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Eleanor just smirked at Cyrus’ suggestion of her coming to a game. “Maybe I will,” she said simply. She had actually gone to the game in question, but it had been with Nate so she hadn’t told him. Nate had surprised her with tickets claiming that she was such a big Appleby Arrows fan that he knew she’d want to see them against their bitter rivals. It was thoughtful and sweet, but he of course didn’t know the real reason Ella loved the Arrows. Nate had gone to Ilvermony, so he would have had no way of knowing of the great love between Cyrus and she. She planned to keep it that way for now, until she needed to tell him. She didn’t know why she’d need to tell him though, unless...no, she couldn’t think of that possibility right now.

A flurry of emotions filled Eleanor as Cyrus told her he lived in Soho, just a neighborhood away. She could tell how excited he was, he hadn’t bothered to hide that. He couldn’t have if he wanted to; Ella had a way of reading him like a book. She knew she shouldn’t feel as excited as he at the prospect of living so close, but she couldn’t help herself. “What a great area; there’s a lot of great pubs and restaurants,” she told him, then realized she sounded like she was insinuating something. She felt her cheeks glow pink and cleared her throat. “Well, I am starving, and there’s a great fish & chips food truck here, if we can find it,” she told him, jerking her head towards all the food. She began to walk, falling into step beside him, resisting the sudden strong urge to take his hand in hers.

@cyrus

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It was truly amazing to Cyrus that after so much time, Eleanor still seemed to have the same affect on him. He could never stop himself from grinning at her, and his grin only widened still when she say she may come to one of his matches. "Just say the word and I'll score you and your dad some tickets," he said with a wink. Having Eleanor at a game of his again made him excited. Back in school, Cyrus would always say she was his good luck charm. He always felt better and more confident whenever he heard her in the stands. And he was sure even just seeing her at a game now would have the same effect, if not more so.

Cyrus nodded excitedly at Eleanor. "Yeah, I was really attracted to the hustle and bustle," he shrugged simply. Picking out a flat hadn't been all that difficult for Cyrus. He knew he would only be home a few months out of the year, so it didn't have to be too luxurious, and he figured in a well populated area he wouldn't really be home that much anyway. He was pretty happy with his choice of location, even more so now that he knew he wasn't that far from where Eleanor lived. Cyrus raised his eyebrows when Eleanor suggested they get a bite to eat. Cyrus could never turn her down. "That sounds lovely," he nodded, as he began to walk along with her, fighting the pull he felt to link arms with her or hold hands. "My treat."

@eleanor

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Eleanor smiled at Cyrus’ offer of tickets. “I’ll have him check his schedule; he’s taking a step back from broadcasting every home Arsenal game this year. He says he’ll never retire, but I think my Mum has him thinking about it. She wants a vacation home in the Canary Islands,” she told him, then gave a small chuckle. It was so easy, talking to him like they hadn’t been out of contact for three years. It wasn’t fair; Nate was a great guy and treated her wonderfully. But he wasn’t Cyrus; he DEFINITELY wasn’t Cyrus. Being here with him again made her long for him even more, but she wouldn’t let him know that. No, it had been his idea to end things, and she wanted him to be the one to say the words - I made a mistake. I miss you. I love you.

She just shrugged her shoulders daintily as Cyrus offered to pay. It was the least he can do, after showing up and making her feel all of the feelings. She would never said that out loud though; it sounded far too corny in her own head. She led him to the food truck of her choice, which she spotted quickly with a keen eye. She ordered her fish and chips and stepped aside for Cyrus to order. “He’s paying,” she declared, a small smirk playing at her lips.

@cyrus

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Cyrus nodded along with the conversation as the two of them walked down the street. Even after all of this time, Cyrus had never forgotten how easy conversation was with Eleanor. He was surprised, however, at the fact the two of them could pick up and talk like they had never separated to begin with. "Wow," he said, a smile never disappearing from his lips. "That's definitely a tempting offer. I'll take her up on that if he doesn't," he joked with a laugh. Cyrus had always had a certain sense of humor, but it was always easy to see through. He liked being cheesy that way.

The Slytherin alum watched Eleanor with a smile as she sought out the food truck of her liking. He followed her over and stood just behind her as she ordered, his smile widening as she stepped to the side and looked at him as she declared that he was paying. He shook his head and chuckle, pulling out his wallet. "I'll have the same," he said, handing the vendor the money. "You haven't changed, Ella," he said looking at her as he stuffed his wallet back away, grinning at the brunette.

@eleanor

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There it went again, her heart fluttering faster as he called her by her nickname. Ella. He had been the one to come up with it of course; her father had called her Ellie, her mother Elle, and Shilo always called her Nora.  Ella she had ended up liking best, probably because of Cyrus.  Definitely because of Cyrus.  She hadn't heard someone call her that in three years - Nate insisted on Eleanor, which he called a classical Victorian name that suited her, and her coworkers followed suit.  "You know, Dad might have something to say about you getting a vacation house with my mother," she teased, suppressing a giggle.  Her dad may have his grumblings about retirement, but once he saw the houses her mother had picked out, she thought he'd quickly get used to the idea.  "I'll have to let him know I saw you; he always liked you," she told him, leaving the part out where he offered to take his shotgun to Cyrus' house when he found out they had broken up.

Ella sat down on a park bench overlooking the Thames; it was a beautiful day out, and the river sparkled blue.  It would be a perfect day the day she ran into Cyrus again.  "Try it, it's amazing," she told him, waiting for him to take his first bite before tucking into her own lunch.  They sat in silence while they ate, but the silence was not uncomfortable.  It made Ella feel all the more guilty that she hadn't mentioned her boyfriend to him.  "You know, you're the only one who really calls me that anymore.  Ella,"  she blurted out, taking a sip of her water.  "Work always calls me Eleanor.  It's a bit more adult they think," she said with a little shrug.  "But...you can still call me Ella," she added quickly, her cheeks turning pink.  She didn't want him to think he'd made a bad move by calling her Ella.

@cyrus

[Deleted]

Cyrus couldn't help but smile at Eleanor's teasing. "Don't worry, you and your dad could get visitation rights," he continued teasing lightly. Cy's grin widened when Ella had said her dad always liked him. Cyrus had always had a feeling, as he always got along very well with Eleanor's parents. He had never spent much time around muggles before until he had started datig Ella, and being around her family was very fun to him. They were so different than anything he had ever encounter before and he loved them for that. "Well, be sure to tell him I said 'hi' and I've got tickets for him any time," he said.

Cyrus followed Eleanor to the bench overlooking the river and he sat down, a comfortable distance between them that he found himself wanting to close. Cyrus smiled when she urged him to try it, and he took a bite of his meal. It easily had to be some of the best fish and chips he had ever consumed, if only because he was sitting next to Eleanor once again. Cyrus contently munched away on his lunch as Eleanor spoke about her nickname. He swallowed his last bite and looked up at her and slowly a smile spread across his face once again. "Well, good," he finally said. "Makes it all the more special." He didn't realize how awkwardly weird that sounded until he had already said it. "Well, I probably wouldn't stop calling you Ella even if you begged me." He smirked playfully at the brunette.

@eleanor

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Eleanor nodded and laughed. "Of course," she said softly when he asked her to give her father his regards.  Again, the feeling of wanting to tell him everything was bubbling up inside of her, begging to be let go.  But she couldn't; he hadn't earned the right to know that part of her life back yet.  And yet, she was curious of his.  Whether or not he had a relationship, if he had had any relationship since they had parted ways after graduation.  She held her tongue, though.

She ate her fish and chips quietly, smiling half to herself as Cyrus said he wouldn't stop calling her Ella.  "I wouldn't want you to."  The words came out quicker than she would have liked, and she paused in her eating.  She looked up at him and held his gaze.  Merlin she just wanted to kiss him so badly.  She refrained though; some things she couldn't do without having a serious chat with Nate.  "So have you been seeing anyone?" she blurted out suddenly, cursing herself for having a mouth that was quicker than her brain sometimes.


@cyrus

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Hearing her laugh gave Cyrus this unbelievably warm feeling. It was like when she laughed, they were seventeen again and walking the grounds around school, hand in hand. Back then, he felt invincible. Like he could conquer anything that came barreling his way and Eleanor would be there right by his side. Since she had left his life, he didn't feel that same invincibilty. Sure, becoming a Quidditch player was his life's dream and it was great - but it would have been even better with her by his side. It was his biggest regret that he had let her go.

Looking into Ella's eyes seemed to take him back to years ago as well. To days spent in Hogsmeade at the Three Broomsticks, sharing butterbeer or wandering off to play together in the snow. Cyrus could get lost in her eyes forever if he stared long enough. Cy had stopped eating, in fact, to let himself just enjoy that old feeling as he looked at her. Though, her question caught him off guard. Cyrus looked down at his food for a second as a small, half smile appeared and he let out one small chuckle. "Heh, no," he finally looked back up at her, only slightly embarrased to admit it. "Quidditch keeps me pretty busy. I... haven't had time to meet anyone." No one like her anyway. Being a famous Quidditch player definitely brought in its fair share of female admirers, but deep down Cyrus had never stopped loving Eleanor and he wasn't sure he ever could.

@eleanor

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Eleanor couldn't help but feel a swooping sensation when Cyrus admitted he had not seen anyone else since they parted ways.  She only wished she could say the same, but she supposed a small fib would not hurt.  "Oh...me neither.  Nothing serious at least," she heard herself said with a small laugh.  She wondered why she said that; was it true?  Nate had made multiple comments about wanting to move in together; he had even left listings of one-bedroom apartments on her desk at work. She had claimed her lease was unbreakable, she couldn't leave her roommate in the lurch.  That wasn't true of course, her roommate was already squealing about being a bridesmaid in a wedding that was completely nonexistent yet.  She supposed that was the normal progression of relationships - she just always thought it would be CYRUS she'd walk down that aisle to.

Eleanor finished off her fish and chips, then looked over at Cyrus.  "How long are you in town for?" she asked him softly.  How much longer would he be in the area before he was whisked away by his Quidditch team to some far away town to play for all his adoring fans.

@cyrus