The Wheels Turn Clockwise (Eleanor)

[Deleted]

Vic was practically skipping around like a schoolgirl, which wasn't something Victoire Weasley, Minister for Magic, did. Still, she found herself giggling as she rushed down the halls of the Ministry, a bouquet of flowers in her hand. Teddy had sent them, she guessed. It would be awkward if anyone else had considering the note that was left with them on her desk. Plus, very few people had access to her office and Teddy was one of them. There was no way the flowers would be from Sebastian, because that time had come and gone. Not that he'd gotten her flowers anyway.

She had just finished a meeting with Hermione when she returned to her office, the flowers presenting themselves before her. She had another meeting to get to but she didn't want to leave them behind so she just scooped them up and headed to the elevators, not even realizing the way that people were staring. They were smiling, happy that the Minister didn't have that severe look on her face that she often did. She was acting her age, for once, and that was something to smile about in moment where it was appropriate. Like heading down the hall with flowers in her hand.

She stepped out of the elevator, face buried in the flowers, and nearly bumped into someone. She stepped aside, lowering the sea of pink and red petals, "oh, I'm sorry!" she said, that cheerful smile still on her face.

@eleanor

[Deleted]

For the past week, Eleanor had felt on top of the world. Not even Nate throwing her withering looks when the pink peonies arrived three days ago, or her favorite macaroons yesterday could bring her down from this high. She’d put herself out there and confessed to Cyrus that she loved him and couldn’t be in a world where he wasn’t in her life, and he admitted he never stopped loving her. It was like the four years that had passed since graduation had never happened; every spare moment they got they were together. Cyrus had spent the night last night before heading back north for Quidditch practice. They had wined and dined and fallen asleep in each others arms; to her it was perfect.


She admittedly wasn’t paying much attention to her surroundings when she almost bumped into someone holding a large bouquet of roses. “That’s alright Victoire!” Ella said, unable to keep the chipper tone out of her voice. “Those are beautiful. Wait…” she studied her friends face, a smile spreading across her own. “Teddy?” she whispered excitedly.

@victoire

[Deleted]

Victiores worried face shifted into a beaming smile as she saw who she had almost run into. "Eleanor! Hi!" she reached one hand out to place it on Eleanors shoulder in greeting, but her other hand was still holding the bouquet. When El guessed who the flowers were form, Victoire couldn't help but grin sheepishly and cover her face with the flowers for a breif moment before lowering them down. "Yes. He's so sweet," she giggled. "I found them on my desk with a note! He didn't sign it but I really hope that no one else wrote me that note because that would be... inappropriate," she laughed. "Where are you headed, El?"

@eleanor

[Deleted]

Eleanor gave a delighted squeal as Vic confirmed that the flowers were from Teddy. When they had all been at school, Victoire and Cyrus had always been on friendly terms, so there had been plenty of double dates. They had a lot of fun, the four of them, and work tearing both couples apart had been a downer in more ways than one. But now it seemed like destiny was falling into place with Teddy back and making Vic happy again, and Cyrus making her feel like the most important person on the planet. “I’m sure they are from him, that would be something he would do,” Ella reassured her friend. “I actually was about to go get some breakfast, Cyrus stayed over last night and um...we didn’t have time to each breakfast this morning,” she said with a shy chuckle. Not that she had minded anyway, but now he stomach was yelling at her to feed it, and there was an amazing bagel place around the corner.

@victoire

[Deleted]

Vic nodded at El's reassurance. She mentioned breakfast and Cryus and Vic narrowed her eyes. "Ooh, dear. Now, I feel I need to hear at least some of that story," she stepped forward, linking her free arm through Eleanors, "mind if I join you? I was just going to get some things done in between meetings, but I have time," that sentence in itself was a miracle. Victoire never took breaks if there was work to do. But she was ahead of her load and, really, she was a different person now. At least a little. She knew the importance of breaks now, of relationships, of bonding. It was getting easier and easier to actually balance her life which, in turn, was making her better and better at her job.

@eleanor

[Deleted]

Eleanor nodded happily with a smile as Vic asked to join her on her bagel run. “Of course you can! I was hoping you’d come anyway so I can tell you about Cy,” she said, feeling giddy. It was probably odd to anyone to see the Minister of Magic linking arms with a girl in the Magical Games and Sports department, but Victoire and Eleanors friendship went back to their time at Hogwarts; Vic had been a Slytherin like Cyrus, and since they had been friendly, Ella had developed a friendship with both her and Teddy.


As they left the Ministry, Ella finally spilled the beans. “So I ran into Cy during one of my lunch outings at the food trucks by the Tower of London. We had lunch and...well, old feelings resurfaced. Of course, Nate was still a thing, but I talked to Shilo and realized that Nate was always a temporary thing. My heart belongs to Cyrus, it always has.” She stopped for a minute as they reached the bagel shop and ordered herself a poppy seed bagel with light cream cheese and a coffee. She allowed Vic to order before they sat down at a little table. “So Cy took me out to dinner at this amazing little French restaurant, and I told him everything about Nate, including my breakup with him. And, one thing led to another, now we’re back together.” She sighed happily, taking a bite of her bagel. After she swallowed, she looked pointedly at Victoire. “And you? How did Victoire and Teddy come back together to form the perfect power couple?” she asked.

@victoire

[Deleted]

Vic grinned as El accepted her as a companion, saying she hoped she'd come anyway. It'd be nice to have someone to talk to about Teddy too, of course. "Excellent, let us be off!" she said with another cheery giggle. Seriously, it was almost like they were school girls again.

Soon, they were on the move, and Eleanor was telling her story. Vic listened as they walked, stopped to order, and began their meal. "Wow... I mean, I'm not surprised that you two got back together. Is Nate... I mean are you okay? With that breakup and all?" she asked with a concerned furrowing of her brows. "Cy always had style, I'll give him that," Vic said with a chuckle. Then El asked about her and Teddy and Vic shook her head. "Well, 'power couple' is a bit much but... I guess I just had to realize that I was better with him then without him," she explained, "I hired him as my guard and thought that would be enough but, well, I guess those feelings were always there, really. I freaked out a little bit when he told me he loved me though," she admitted, remembering her slight hyperventilation, "but eventually I came to my senses... we're happy. I think. I worry that I'm holding him back, though," she admitted.

@eleanor

[Deleted]

Eleanor stiffened only slightly at the mention of Nate. “I am okay with the breakup; to be perfectly honest he was rather annoying. The things that I originally found charming about him were only charming for the first few weeks. It was long past its’ expiration date, that relationship. The only issue was, I was the only one who thought so.” She paused to take another bite of her bagel, chewing slowly then swallowing before continuing. “The night I broke up with him, he was planning on proposing. I didn’t know he was that serious about it, I mean we didn’t live together or anything like that. But there he was in his living room, down on one knee and I had to break his heart.”


Ella took a sip of coffee. “He’s still giving me the cold shoulder at work; thankfully we’ve been so busy for work that I don’t have time to feel bad. Even though...I don’t, really. Cyrus has always been the one for me,” she admitted, shrugging her shoulders daintily.

@victoire

[Deleted]

Vic nodded. Well, she was glad at least that Eleanor wasn't in that relationship anymore if it didn't make her happy.Vic didn't really know Nate that well, but he seemed like a decent enough guy. At least El was happy, that's what mattered right now. Vic wasn't going to go checking in with her friends ex who she didn't really know. "Oh my," Victoire gasped as she mentioned the proposal incident. "I'm glad you were still honest, El. That muse have been really hard," and stressful, yikes. Vic knew some people might have said yes out of pure pity. "Well, the cold shoulder is better than some people get. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Feeling bad isn't worth your time, so I'm glad you're not worrying. But Cyrus... what does he think about all that with Nate? I mean, didn't they know each other?"

@eleanor

[Deleted]

Eleanor nodded, knowing she should probably feel more guilty than she did. “It was difficult, but it was the right thing to do. I would have been miserable and resentful if I had said yes, and if we’re laying all cards on the table, I don’t think I could have remained faithful to him,” she said slowly, hoping she didn’t have to elaborate. Ella and Cyrus were meant for each other; if she had married someone else, they’d still somehow find their way back, and the last thing Eleanor wanted in her life was a messy divorce.


“They don’t actually, I don’t think. Nate went to Ilvermorny but he was an Arrows fan up until a few days ago, so perhaps Nate went to a few of their games and they possibly met?” Eleanor explained with a shrug. “He...he was surprised that the relationship was that serious to Nate I think, but I think that left his mind pretty quickly. He might feel a little guilty, I’m not sure. I am sure that he never stopped loving me though, and that was all I needed to hear to be reassured this was the right choice,” she finished. She took another bite of her bagel and sighed. She could take Nate’s cold shoulders, as long as she knew that Cy was waiting for her back home.

@victoire

[Deleted]

Vic nodded. She understood that, in a way. That it was good to catch something before you felt miserable and resentful. She did that, recently, with Teddy. She had convinced herself so heavily that he was a hindrance more than a help to her work that she had pushed him away and lost her cool when he tried to tell her how he felt. She had almost let him get away, too, but she found herself. She found that she would regret it forever if she didn't do something about it, if she didn't love him. And boy, did she love him.

So the boys didn't know each other, that was good. "It was the right choice... I believe that," Vic said, vaguely talking about herself. She felt mystified, surreal, and maybe a little lost for a moment, thinking about how different her life would be if she hadn't broken up with Teddy that first time. Would they be married by now? Would they have kids? Where would they be living? No, she was only twenty three... but that sort of stuff wouldn't have been far off.

She cleared her throat, "I'm happy for you."

@eleanor

[Deleted]

Eleanor gave Victoire an all-too-understanding smile. It wasn’t supposed to be common knowledge that there was something of a flirtation between Victoire and Sebastian, however Ella had heard whispers about it before Teddy had come back. She was glad though that Teddy and Victoire had found their way back to each other; aside from herself and Cyrus she didn’t know a more perfectly suited couple. “And I am happy for you too,” Eleanor said brightly, reaching across the table and squeezing her arm gently. “Listen, what would you say to a double date; the four of us, like we did a few times in Hogwarts? Cy is getting Nutcracker tickets for us since he knows how much I love the ballet; we could get four tickets and go to dinner beforehand?” Ella suggested, looking at her friend hopefully. Surprisingly, the ballet had been Cyrus’ idea, even though Ella would have eventually hinted heavily at wanting to go. She was glad he hadn’t forgotten these tiny details about her, even after several years apart.

@victoire

[Deleted]

Vic nodded as Eleanor said she was happy for her. She suggested a double date, of course, and Vic's smile only grew. "The ballet sounds lovely! We can pay Cyrus back if he can get them," Vic said. "I'm sure Teddy wouldn't mind, of course, but I will double check with him. Dinner would be great too," then she laughed, "it'll be strange doing adult type double dates, won't it? Like paying for the ballet and fancy dinners and whatnot without having to ask our parents permission and staying out as late as we want," she chuckled again. "This is my first adult relationship, so. At least a boyfriend," she corrected before she could stop herself.

@eleanor

[Deleted]

Eleanor was elated when Victoire agreed to the double date. “Oh good!” she exclaimed happily, nodding as Vic said she’d pay Cyrus back for the tickets if he was able to get them. “Don’t worry, we’ll get them; my father has a lot of connections in the entertainment world, so we’ll get fantastic seats I promise!” she told her. Eleanors’ father being a famous sports broadcaster did have its’ perks sometimes. “It’s a good weird though, but weird I agree. Remember when we stole food from the tables in Great Hall and had our own picnic outside?” It had been a year into Ella and Cyrus’ relationship, and she’d remembered being slightly in awe of Victoire and Teddy initially. Their parents were famous in the Wizarding world after all; heroes in the Second Wizarding War! Imagine her relief when she realized both were down to earth people who just enjoyed being a couple.

Ella nodded at Victoire’s admittance that this was her first adult boyfriend relationship; not so slightly confirming there had been something with Sebastien. “It’s easy to get swept up in things sometimes; there are a lot more things to stress out about being an adult too. But as long as you remember why you love the person you’re with, it makes it all worthwhile,” she told her. It was why she and Nate had not worked out, and why falling back in love with Cyrus had been so incredibly easy.

@victoire

[Deleted]

She was still lingering a bit on how Eleanor had to make a hard decision, but made the right one. Just like Vic did the right thing letting Teddy go for her career all those years ago. Otherwise she wouldn't be where she was now. That was important to her. Being the Minister wasn't just a dream, she knew she had to do it. She knew she was the right person to be there right now, during all of this. She was meant to be here. She was also meant to find Teddy again. Or rather, let him find her.

"How is your father?" she asked. "Outside picnics... yes! Maybe we should take up that tradition at work now," she chuckled softly, taking the last few bites of her bagel.

Love. Well, Victoire did love Teddy. Always did, really, though she had feelings for Sebastian, too. She contemplated getting into that now with El but.... she wasn't sure if she was ready. "Ugh," she groaned once the bagel was gone, chuckling and then looking up at Eleanor, "being adults is oh so fun," she joked. "But yes, I agree.... having someone makes it easier."

@eleanor