Bones

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real-alecarrow:

“If magic can improve technology, why not use it?” Alecto replied matter of factly. “No use living like a muggle when you can live like a king.” At this point, she was just repeating purist propaganda she’d heard, but she spoke the words like they were here own. Everything she did, she did with confidence.

Ale stepped forward and got a better look at the handsome man who’d asked for her advice. Shame about the baby, she thought flippantly. Maternal instincts weren’t exactly her strong suit. 

“You don’t look very far along,” she joked, pointing at his stomach.

Edgar hadn’t put much attention to whom he was speaking to when he posed his original question, but the answer caused him to raise an eyebrow to his companion. He vaguely recognized her, a pureblood of some sort, could have been a number of ones he refused to spend time with these days but had known in his youth. That made no matter though, it was the purist response that he found a tad annoying.

“Well magical technology can be buggy, I’d rather not blow up my child if I can help it. I don’t see a problem with muggle items” Edgar stated plainly as his eyes reverted back to the box, “I just don’t see the necessary point in all this added magic. I need a carrier for flooing and apparating, whether it can float or rock is irrelevant” he explained, “Then again maybe it is necessary to those who don’t trust muggle devices, I guess this might be safer than using magic to float the baby itself”.

As she made a joke about him not being very far along, a smile did reach the corner’s of Edgar’s mouth as he glanced at her from the edge of the box, “No, that’s just the burrito I had for lunch” he joked, with a chuckle, “My partner is nearly eight months along, though. Can’t stand the smell of cilantro and red meat so I figured I’d indulge while she’s visiting friends”. 

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

“I mean if you think it’s necessary, then I guess it sounds good” 

Edgar Bones was confused. It wasn’t often that he visited magical shops, or well shops in general. He preferred to let Helena do the shopping for the baby and just going along to carry parcels, but today he was here unaided. The baby was due within the next few weeks and crunch time was beginning. They had to finish the nursery, make sure they were completely set up at Mungos, and still sort through the teetering stacks of paperwork all before the baby was actually here. Today’s task had been to select a baby carrier, safe for apparating and flooing. It was mind boggling the technology available in the wizarding world and while they already had a car seat and an array of muggle strollers for the baby, this would provide them a way to transport their child safely while apparating or using the floo system. Edgar wasn’t completely sold, but his parents assured him it was necessary.

“What do you think?” it wasn’t weird to ask a random stranger, though this one seemed to be looking at everything but baby items. “Is it necessary to have a carrier that also floats? Isn’t that what a stroller is for? I’m buying the wheels attachment anyway, so why does it need to float?” he asked the person closest to him, as he examined the box he was holding. “Also, I wonder if it’s protected from spell meddling. The last thing I need is for some sick fuck to drop the baby while it’s carrier is floating”

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

Edgar & Helena Bones

@hb-helenaofwales

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

I’m With You | Edgar & Helena

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

hb-helenaofwales:

At Edgar’s comment, Helena’s lips turned up even more. Something was going right. Just the thought made her pleased and Helena hoped that things would be able to happen rather quickly – she still wanted to enjoy the rest of the evening, after all. “That’s perfect,” she said excitedly, her voice tinged with excitement. She smoothed an imaginary wrinkle out of her dress and readjusted her handbag as she tightened the wrap around her shoulders.

If she was being honest, Helena had worried that something would come up that would make their elopement, well, at least a little bit delayed. It had seemed that whatever they’d planned in regards to their wedding had been undone – mostly by their parents, of course. Though even if there had been problems, she supposed she couldn’t have complained too much for Malta was beautiful, even now as the sun had begun to move back down toward the horizon.  

Helena paid little attention as Edgar began to lead her away from the office, back toward where they’d come and she let out a delighted little laugh as she realized that this was the last night she would spend as Helena Parkinson. The thought was a pleasant one, one that warmed her from the inside out. There was a peace in the thought, in the knowledge that they would be a family – in their hearts and on paper.

There had never been anything she wanted more than this.

While the scenery was beautiful, Helena only noticed it in a cursory manner, more focused on the situation at hand. She supposed they would have time to enjoy the scenery later, when rings were on their fingers and they shared the same name. But for now, she focused on holding onto Edgar’s hand, on the knowledge that when they left this country, they would be married. As they stopped in a cove, her lips curved upwards again. The sight of the sun moving down and the glow of dusk was an attractive one; the water lapping at the edge of the shoreline made for a nice sound and Helena kicked off her heels, wanting to feel the sand between her toes.

“It’s perfect,” she murmured, going up to her tiptoes to press a kiss to Edgar’s lips, falling in love with him all over again as he reiterated that it was alright if they waited to marry, if she’d changed her mind about eloping. Her fingers moved toward each side of his abdomen and she pressed another kiss to his collarbone. “Why would I want to wait?” she asked, her head tilted to the side in amusement.

“I don’t care about the bloody wedding,” she stated, not for the first time in the past few weeks. Well, to be fair, she’d cared that it didn’t turn into some circus, but she didn’t need a large party with opulence and a guest list that rivaled that of the Queen of England. “I care about our marriage. I want to be your wife. I want you to be my husband. More than anything.” She sucked in a breath. “And I don’t want to wait, E. I’m done with waiting.”

She exhaled heavily as she heard footsteps approaching and as she turned her head, Helena realized that the time had come. With the corners of her mouth still turned up, she shrugged her wrap off and watched it fall on the sand. After pulling the rings out of her handbag, it followed. “Unless, of course, you’ve changed your mind in the last five minutes,” she teased Edgar, amusement in her eyes and a twist of her lips.

Had he changed his mind?

That was a good question that Edgar had to really ponder on as Helena looked up at him. The idea that had been so fresh and so prevalent in his mind moments earlier was now leaving a sinking feeling in his stomach. Now that it was actually happening reality had begun to set in for what he was getting himself into and Edgar Bones was beginning to lose it once more. Was he ready to give up his freedom? Was he ready to dedicate his life to something so permanent? If tomorrow he woke up and wanted to go to Africa, he could not for after tonight he would have a wife to consult in all matters. His life, in about an hour, would no longer be just his but belonging to something greater than him. 

It was not that Edgar did not want to marry Helena but instead everything finally hitting him all at once. They were about to forsake their plans to marry and probably anger those closest to them. His parents would be livid and he was sure hers wouldn’t be exactly thrilled. The words of his father filled his head once more and for a moment Edgar Bones forgot he was a man of twenty seven and instead felt like at child at twelve disappointing his parents. Could he really do that to them?

But just as quickly as the fear of disappointing them consumed Edgar the saving grace appeared in the reality that his disappointment was nothing compared to the one they had doled to him this evening. Edgar might have been getting married without their approval, but they had lied to him for years. Their disappointment would never rival what he had felt earlier and it occurred in that moment to Edgar that their opinion should matter none. He had spent his entire life disappointing them, his current actions should come as no surprise, and now was not the time to attempt for their approval. Their approval mattered none.

The idea of marrying Helena needed to be for him. As selfish as it seemed, Edgar needed to make sure he was marrying her for himself and nothing else. Freedom was the one thing Edgar had clung to for the past ten years and was this worth giving that up? Was Helena a good enough reason to forsake his wishes and wants? The short answer was yes, but the longer answer was the most relevant to this moment.

Within the last ten years Edgar had wanted nothing than to travel freely around the globe and take pictures. He had no goals, no wishes, nothing to look forward to. Instead he lived out of a bag and day to day. Waking up every morning often resulted in new experiences that only total and complete detachment could bring. Edgar was happy with that existence and living life just for a single moment was good enough. But would it always be good enough? After meeting Helena, Edgar had begun to think about more than just living in the moment. His thoughts often traveled to the next weekend, or the next month, and then the next year. What would he be doing? Where would he be? In a year he would be twenty eight, in two he would be twenty nine. Beyond that was the reality that Edgar Bones was going to someday grow old and in twenty years was he going to be happy leading a life like he was. At forty, or at fifty, was sleeping in a tent by himself and taking pictures simply going to be enough to make him happy as it did now. 

The answer to that was no. At some point Edgar had come to the realization that the freedom and flexibility he had in his youth would not simply do what it did for him now. Right now he did not mind waking up alone, or not seeing another person for days at a time, but eventually that was going to grow old. Companionship seemed the only logical answer, but what kind of companionship was the greatest question. 

Deep down, whether Edgar was ready to realize it or not, he craved the companionship Helena gave him. No he could no longer go out to a bar until all hours. No he could not just pack up and leave with a day’s notice. No he no longer led the interesting life that he once had invested himself in. But none of that mattered. He missed none of that because what Helena gave him was greater than anything else he had ever received. In Helena he had found a confidante, a lover, and a friend. When things were good, they were great. When things were bad, she refused to leave his side. They were a team. Helena gave him purpose. There was no experience in the world he would trade for being able to go home knowing she would be there waiting for him. There was nothing that gave him the same high nor brought the same smile to his face. Life might have been boring compared to what it once was for him, but Edgar would never give what he had now for all the adventures in the world. For all the adventures he had in his life, marrying Helena would be the greatest of them all. 

“Nothing could change my mind” Edgar told Helena, bringing his arms to wrap around her bare shoulders and interlocking her in his embrace. “This is it. You’re it” he promised, shaking his head slowly, “I’ve never wanted anything more than you. I’m ready for this” and Edgar truly did feel ready. There was no feeling of trepidation and all anxieties seemed to melt away. By the end of the evening he would be hers, she would be his, and they would be one. 

The moment was broken by footsteps as Sergio joined them, leather booklet in hand. “Are you ready?” he asked causing Edgar to release Helena, giving her an assured smile, before nodding at his friend. Reaching out he took Helena’s ring from her, as he would need it for the ceremony, tucking it in his pocket. “Ready as we’ll ever be”. 

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I’m With You | Edgar & Helena

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

hb-helenaofwales:

“Very well,” she said, trying to figure out what she should pack if they were going someplace with a moderate enough climate, though she supposed they could always shop or transfigure some things that they had – since quitting her job, she’d become anything but a slouch at household and fashion spells. Merlin, sometimes she wondered just what had happened to her. But then she would think of Edgar, think of the baby that was coming soon, and such thoughts seemed almost blasphemous.

Truthfully, Helena didn’t really care where they got married at this point. She probably should have been a bit more concerned about the seeming flip of a switch, but it was not something she thought about as she continued to gather some clothing together into a bag. It was one that had been charmed to hold much more than it looked, so Helena used her wand to summon clothing for both of them before charming it to pack itself as neatly as possible as she moved to get more toiletries that they would need. It did not take long to get things together and only a few seconds for her to heal Edgar’s hand. Though she’d never wanted to be a healer, she’d learned enough spells that she patched him up with little problem and then another one to remove any blood that had accrued on his skin. It was done in a moment and it took Helena even less time to do another quick sweep of the room, throwing the wedding rings into her evening handbag and tucking that under her arm before closing the suitcase.

Helena grabbed a wrap as Edgar threw on his suit jacket and followed him to the floo, nodding as she followed in instructions, though her mind was a bit confused about why he’d choose Malta of all places for them to be married. While she knew he’d spent time there in the past, it was not an island that Helena was familiar with. Still, as she moved through the Floo Network, she wondered where exactly she was going to end up at, having noted that many island nation ministries were often much less formal than she was used to.

She needn’t have worried.

After the spinning stopped, Helena stepped out of the floo with the grace of one who had done nothing but floo to get places for the past six months. She shook off her skirt before pointing her wand and mumbling a quick spell to remove any wrinkles and bits of dust that had accrued. When she saw Edgar come through, her lips quirked at the corners and she took his hand. “Is it red or the fact that you’ll be able to take it off of me later?” she teased him, her lips dangerously close to his ear as they continued moving through the ministry.

As she followed Edgar, Helena looked around, taking in the differences between this ministry and the one she’d worked at for several years. It was nice, though she could see that it appeared much more laid back – which made sense, she supposed, given that most Mediterranean countries were more laidback than some of the other Western European ones.

Helena stood by herself as Edgar went into an office, a smile on her face when he came to bring her in, introducing her to a man that she had never seen before. “It’s lovely to meet you, Sergio,” she told him as she held out her hand, pleased when the other man took it and responded in kind.

“Darling, can he help us?” she asked Edgar, her wrap loosening as her hand tightened on her evening handbag.

“Love, he can do more than help us. He can marry us”

Sergio Vella was a man that Edgar Bones knew quite well. The pair had been friends and roommates for Edgar’s stay in Malta. They were both transplants in a foreign city when they met and it had been Sergio that had convinced Edgar to stay longer than he originally intended. They were broke, twenty year olds with a streak of independence. Edgar had left his family in England years prior and Sergio had left his in a neighboring province. Neither had any idea of what they wanted to do and had bonded over their shared uncertainty. In the end Edgar had moved from odd job to odd job between photography contracts and Sergio had ended up at the Ministry. Clearly he no longer was just a desk clerk trying to earn rent money, it seemed with an office of his own and a fancy title Sergio had moved up. But that’s what happened in life, people grew up. Edgar was nowhere near the same person he had been years prior and Sergio clearly was not either, but the comradery remained. Their friendship was unchanged.

It was fate that this all had worked out so far without a hitch. Fate that after his rash decision that they should marry right then that they had managed to find someone this late to do so. It was fate that it was his friend. “We have the valid licenses and Sergio is registered to perform marriage ceremonies” Edgar explained to Helena, “We can actually do this”. 

It seemed surreal the fact this was coming together. In a weird way Edgar had expected it not to work out, he thought that something was going to keep them from getting married tonight. Of course he had hoped it would, but it seemed that the theme of the night so far had been against him so why would this be any different? But it was different because here they were minutes from getting married. There was nothing stopping them. Nothing holding them back. Something that had been in the works for months now was finally coming together, even if it was totally different than either had originally intended.

“He’s going to gather his things and meet us” Edgar explained leading Helena through the familiar halls once more until they were finally out of the building. They might have been eloping but Edgar was going to be damned if they said their vows in a stuffy office. It might not have been the wedding of her dreams but Edgar wanted to make it at least somewhat memorable, the least he could do was provide a scenic backdrop to the most important promises they would make. 

The beach he had in mind was not too far from the Ministry. It was a muggle beach but then again, unlike England, most of Malta belonged to the muggles and the wizards had learned to properly merge with society. It was a place he had spent a lot of time when living in Malta and one that seemed to fit the occasion well. With a wave of his wand their suitcase was small enough to stick in his pocket so that in the excitement of things it would not get lost. 

After walking a short distance they reached the particular cove just as the moon danced over the edge of the water, rising slowly into the night sky. “This is okay?” Edgar asked pausing to look at Helena, knowing they had a minute or two before Sergio arrived. “If you want to back out, it’s okay. We don’t have to do this. We can wait until the actual wedding, I don’t mind if that’s what you want” Edgar told her, his arms moving gently to encompass her frame. “I’m ready and willing to marry you whenever you want. Tonight, tomorrow, in five months. Just say the word and I’ll do it” he promised, “The only thing that matters to me is that I am marrying you”. 

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

littlestbones:

If it weren’t for being well trained at containing her emotions, Amelia likely would have started sobbing in Edgar’s arms. She wasn’t overly affectionate as it was but the hug had become necessary. He was something to ground herself with even though she felt as if her life was spiraling out of control. And he knew her far too well.

She merely nodded when he said she was eating. Appetite or not, it wouldn’t do her any good to go hungry on top of her sour mood. That would only result in her slipping back to poor eating habits. Amelia settled on her sofa and stared blankly at the plate that was offered to her, absentmindedly helping herself to it.

“I hope you are right about her,” She shook her head. “I was expecting you to be the one to blow up at me. Not her and not being ignored and — We’re supposed to be going house hunting this month. I almost want to cancel it all together.” Amelia grimaced after that and shook her head. “That was what I was afraid of. Or should I say who I was afraid of?” As self-sufficient as she was, Amelia still valued her parents’ opinions. She had come to believe leaving the Ministry would result in being called a disappointment or something even worse.

“They spent too much time grooming me for the Ministry for departing to be the best option. Especially with father there. It would reflect poorly on him if his “shining star” burnt out before he got around to announcing his retirement or —“ She was rambling again, needing to take a deep breath before she was certain she had something to say that made sense.

“I keep rereading the information packets they gave me.” Her voice dropped down to a whisper. “I want to find a way to undo what’s in place. But there’s little to work with past knowing I need to keep acting like the legislation is the best thing to pass while at work.”

“I’m not wrong about that, Amelia” Edgar told her glancing up from his food, “Gwen will come around. She cares about you and that means more than whatever her feelings on the Ministry dealings are”. Edgar knew from first hand experience and it was almost weird how this situation echoed the one he had been in a few months prior with Helena. He understood Gwen being upset because he had been upset for similar reasons, it was very hard to understand how someone so smart could be so entangled in something so inherently awful as the Ministry. But just as he had come to terms that Helena was not the Ministry and being upset with her did nothing, Gwen would have to come to terms that being upset with Amelia trying to keep her job would not change the current political environment. Edgar had full faith that Gwen would come around.

“Don’t cancel the house hunting. Whether Gwen comes around now or in a few weeks you’re going to need a place to live together. It’ll keep your mind off of things and maybe give you less stress later when you two need a place” Edgar suggested continuing to eat his food. “I’m not blowing up at you because you’ve already heard it enough from Gwen, I’m sure, and the truth is I have to trust that your intentions are good.  I know you don’t think stealing muggleborn children and putting them into the hands of greedy purebloods is a good answer, you know our parents I don’t think you’d ever believe the best place for any child is at home with people just like them, or even worse in some cases” or at least Edgar hoped that was how she felt. It hadn’t crossed his mind that Amelia could support the legislation, it just seemed too far fetched that his sister who was always obsessed with justice and doing the right thing would change her ideals so radically when it clearly was not the right thing whatsoever. 

Edgar had faith that Amelia wouldn’t turn into their father. Sure the Ministry meant everything to her, but she still had a soul underneath it all. “I don’t think you should worry too much about anything reflecting poorly on him” Edgar shrugged, “Especially considering everyone this side of London knows he’s fucking his secretary. I’m not too sure you can look worse than that” Edgar was aware Amelia didn’t realize he knew. But he knew she did. “Besides I’m sure at this point he’s more than willing to overlook anything you’ve done wrong, considering I’ve given him enough ammunition to hate me into the next century” he told her, his eyes remaining on his food as he spoke. “We got into a fist fight last night. Wasn’t much of a fist fight considering he doesn’t know how to fight, but he’ll be sporting a nice black eye for a few days at least”. 

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

I’m With You | Edgar & Helena

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

hb-helenaofwales:

The institution of marriage was one that Helena believed in, if only because it was so ingrained in her upbringing. Marriage could provide security, a safety net, even if she did not think that safety net was one she needed with Edgar. On the other hand, marriage was also an important social construct in the society they lived in, both muggle and magical. There was an order to things and though she and Edgar had thoroughly buggered that up with the timeline of their relationship, she had wanted to do at least one thing in a traditional manner, even if she had not truly articulated that until he had actually proposed.

While Helena knew that Edgar had not been super eager about wedding planning, she hadn’t really considered why, hadn’t thought much of it with how busy they had been. And even if she had thought about it, she would not have given much weight to it, for he’d proposed and she hadn’t dropped hints ahead of time. To the young woman, it was a symbol of family, one that she believed in more than she’d like to admit.

And yet, Helena was willing to give that up, the one thing she’d asked for since he’d slipped the ring on her finger, if it was going to distress Edgar so much, if it was something that he truly didn’t want after finding out about his father, if it was something he was not yet ready for. She would give up the world for him. Because at the end of the day, they were already a family and in a couple of short months, that family would grow with the birth of their child. Just the thought brought a soft smile to her face and she touched her stomach lightly before looking back at him, her eyes honing in on his knuckle. Merlin, she wished she hadn’t left her wand in the loo.

In a quick moment, his demeanor seemed to change, and Helena was confused at the movement, at the quick change in emotions, though she looked up at him and tried to temper the confusion out of her features.

Helena’s brow furrowed and she held out her hand as her fiancé began pulling her ring off. Her finger felt strangely bare without it, but the brunette looked over at Edgar, waiting as he spoke, unsure of just what he was going to say.

She had wanted to elope weeks ago, their parents be damned, had wanted to put a nonsense to the circus that they were creating. Though if she were being honest, Helena could acknowledge that Edgar’s parents would put up more of a fuss than her own. Her parents would simply be happy with her marriage to a pureblood, to the father of her child – the details of how it came about did not matter to them in the same manner.

As he continued to speak, Helena’s eyes widened and moisture began to prick at the corners. Her lips curved and she found herself nodding at the question, ignoring any logic that said they’d have a few pieces to pick up when they returned, a few emotions to temper. But that didn’t matter, not now. Helena could think of the aftermath when it happened; there was no sense in worrying about a future that had not yet come to pass. She took a breath, one hand moving out to rake over his jawline as the other moved to return the ring to its rightful place on her finger.

“I’m not certain we need to get married all the way in Zimbabwe,” she said softly, her lips curving as she reached up to kiss him, lips curving at the corners. “And you’ll need to let me heal your hand before I’ll consider leaving this house.” Her head tilted to the side, earrings dangling against her shoulders. “But I would love nothing more than to wake up tomorrow as your wife.”

Helena smiled before she stood, moving back to the ensuite to grab her wand so she could heal Edgar’s hand. She took a moment to wave her wand, fixing the wall, before moving to the bureau and pulling out the box that held both of their wedding rings and placing it on the bed. “Where shall we go?” Another wave of the wand and a suitcase was out of the closet on the large bed. “Warm or cold?”

Looking down at what she was currently wearing, Helena smiled, pleased that the fine fabric hadn’t wrinkled. “I never thought that my wedding dress would be bright red, but I think it tends to fit the theme of our relationship, doesn’t it?”

Edgar wasn’t sure what exactly possessed him to want to get married so quickly. Of course he knew where the realization had come from but the idea of eloping was just so everything he was against that it was surprising him as the words left his mouth. However there was no hesitation in both word or feeling. He knew this was right. He knew this was what he wanted. What he needed. 

As he watched Helena fix the wall and begin packing his mind began to wrack thinking of where they could go. This would most likely be their last vacation before the baby and when the baby was born it was going to be nearly impossible to travel for the first few months until it could be properly vaccinated and not in dire need of being fed every few hours. They could go to Zimbabwe or Zambia or Peru or Malaysia some of the man places Edgar loved very much, but Edgar had a feeling that wasn’t where Helena would want to remember tonight taking place. The time difference and then the fact she was not familiar with the culture would probably only bring stress. They needed somewhere closer to home, somewhere that wouldn’t be a world of difference from what she was used to. Some day he would take her to all those places but right now was not the time. 

They could go to Cardiff. That was Helena’s home and somewhere he knew she loved very much. It would be a sentimental backdrop for such an important moment. However, Edgar knew that would open them up to much criticism from her side of the family. He could practically hear the phone calls now, “You got married in your home town and didn’t bother to invite us”. Was it worth the headache? No. They would bring the baby to Cardiff once it was born, it would probably be the first mini vacation they would take in June. 

Greece was another option, somewhere close to Helena’s heart, but they would run into the same issues. On top of the fact that Edgar could not bear to break her grandmother’s heart and get married so close to her without inviting her to the actual wedding, and he knew there was a good chance that if they went to Greece that Helena would insist they wait until the next day when she could attend. Her parents were one thing but Helena was very close to her grandmother and Edgar knew it would only end up hurting her more if they eloped in Greece. 

Helena had been hinting though the last few weeks that she wanted to take one last vacation to Greece before the baby was born. Her grandmother had only seen her when they first announced their pregnancy and this would probably be the only opportunity for her to see Helena fully pregnant and without a child. Of course they would be visiting her home after the baby was born, but it wouldn’t be until the baby was old enough to properly travel more than a few hours in a car or train. The more Edgar thought about it, the more it seemed they couldn’t just not go to Greece.

So what were they supposed to do?

Standing up Edgar held his bad hand as he approached the bed where Helena was packing. “In the middle?” it came out as a question but it seemed the safest option considering he wasn’t exactly sure where they were going yet. Allowing Helena to heal his hand Edgar wracked his brain for good options. Then it hit him. They could vacation in Greece, but that didn’t mean they needed to marry in Greece. 

Malta. 

Close enough to Greece without being too close to Greece to cause issues. Edgar had lived on the island for a year shortly after his stint in Italy. It was a beautiful place with a smaller wizarding community but one that had it’s own Ministry of magic. He was taking a risk but he knew practically all the officials when he lived there and someone had to be left there. Someone who would be able to marry them on such short notice. It was a risk but a calculated one at that.

“I have an idea but we need to hurry” Edgar told Helena taking the suitcase from her and closing it. “It might not work but I think it’s the best option we have” he explained grabbing his suit jacket and sliding it over his shoulders. Taking their suitcase and heading down the stairs into their living room Edgar barely had a moment to think of a backup plan. They were traveling to a relatively foreign place, to Helena at least, to a Ministry in which they could rightfully be denied marriage on such short notice, and also they had nowhere to stay. Things that Edgar never used to worry about were now things that the responsible portion of Edgar had to think of.

Fuck being responsible. They’d stopped being responsible adults twenty minutes prior. 

Putting Helena into the fireplace, Edgar held out the jar of floo powder to her. “Just say Ministry of Magic-Malta” he told her, knowing that it should do the trick. Watching as she disappeared into green smoke Edgar waited a few minutes before stepping into the fireplace, suitcase in hand, and repeating what Helena had just said allowing the green flames to eat him up. 

Stepping out of the floo fireplace Edgar dusted his suit off his eyes quickly finding Helena in the small crowd. This was nothing like the London Ministry. Fewer people and nowhere near as large. It was hard to lose her when she was dressed in such a vividly coloured dress. “Red’s definitely your colour” he smirked as he took her hand and led her through the familiar Ministry. 

It wasn’t often that Edgar spent much time in the magical community in most places he visited. Most times he tried to blend into the muggle crowd but Malta had been different. It was before he had become comfortable blending into muggle society. He had spent time in only magical communities prior and it was here that he had been taught how to assimilate. Edgar could spot a wizard a mile away in a crowd of muggles because of the lessons he’d learned in Malta but felt more than comfortable pretending he was no more special than any other muggle on the street. 

It was like stepping into a book being in the Ministry again. There were so many foreign memories that Edgar felt were merely dreams at this point. Most of his friends were ministry officials at the time and he had casually dated a few others, honestly at one point he’d almost considered taking a job here but the lure of travel and the need to break routine had kept him from the stability of the Ministry. 

Barely anything had changed and Edgar seemed to know exactly where he was going, stopping short outside of a door emblazoned with a gold plated name. “Give me a second” Edgar told Helena leaving her to enter the office to share words with the person inside. After a few minutes he returned beckoning her inside. “Helena, I’d like you to meet Sergio Vella. Sergio, I’d like you to meet my partner, Helena Parkinson”. 

[harryshumjr]

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

I’m With You | Edgar & Helena

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

hb-helenaofwales:

This was a shitshow. That, at least, was obvious. Helena wished, not for the first time, that she hadn’t said anything, that she had kept her thoughts to herself, had not allowed her emotions to take over in her annoyance.

Her eyes shuttered slightly as he stood when she tried to comfort him and Helena swallowed heavily as she reminded herself that he had just had a massive shift in his worldview. It would not be kind to hold that against him and she merely pulled her hand back as she watched him move from the en suite into their bedroom, throwing open a window to breathe in the air that was still quite cool for this time of year.

For a brief moment, Helena simply stood there, confused. It was at least slightly clear that Edgar needed space and she would give it to him, would not allow him to feel suffocated in their own home, though she struggled with her own emotions. Helena leaned against the doorframe as he spoke, his words becoming more confusing the more she listened to them. Her brow furrowed as she struggled to understand what to do now – going to the event was not even an option now, though it seemed that staying here was not one either.

To say that she had seen her fiancé like this previously would have been a lie. Helena, for all of her faults, preferred to think of herself as a fixer and she struggled with the realization that there was nothing she could do to fix this.

Helena refrained from mentioning that having one long-term affair was not quite the same as sleeping around, for both were rather reprehensible, if only for different reasons. Instead she listened, moving more into the bedroom as he continued to speak.

“We can go anywhere you want.” The words came from her mouth unbidden, but she meant them. Whatever she might have said next was lost as he began pacing, speaking as he did so. For a moment, Helena wondered if he was even speaking to her any longer or if he was simply struggling to make sense of what he’d just learned. She stayed silent, listening, her brain making connections as he spoke, her own annoyance rising at the things that her soon-to-be father-in-law had said to him. Helena pushed the annoyance down. This wasn’t about her own emotion right now.

And then Edgar punched a hole in the wall and Helena jolted, surprised. She would be lying if she said she wasn’t worried about him and she hesitantly moved closer, unsure of his reaction as he sat on the floor. Her breath hitched at his final remark and her stomach briefly lurched at the thought of not getting married because of this. Helena closed her eyes and took a deep breath, pushing her own emotions down in the process.

She stood in the center of their bedroom, briefly, as his shoulders heaved, and she moved nearer to him before she slid down the wall to sit next to him. He might not want her touch, but she could provide comfort all the same.

Her voice was soft as she began to speak.

“I’m not sure where to start, love.” Another breath, another beat of silence. “But I know that money doesn’t matter. What you do for work – or don’t do for work – doesn’t change how I feel about you. It doesn’t change our relationship. Maybe money makes it easier sometimes, but we could be living as lower middle-class Muggles in America and we would be happy. Because I would have you, you’d have me, and we’d have our family.”

Helena kicked her shoes off as she curled her legs underneath her. “No matter what happens, we will never turn into them,” she said, her words and tone more vehement. “You are not your father. You’re not going to become your father. You are the best man I know and you don’t take commitments lightly. You make a choice to be with us every single day.” Her hand moved to her stomach. “Our marriage isn’t going to be like theirs and we aren’t going to be like them. We’re the outsiders, remember? We’re a team, you and I. I will always be by your side, even without a piece of paper and even if I don’t share your name.”

Everything felt as if had come crashing down around Edgar. Every thought he had regarding his family was not gone. The happy marriage between his parents was nothing but a sham. His father, the man he looked to, was nothing but a fraud. It was devastating. He didn’t know what to think, or what to feel short of anger and hurt and alone. How could he feel anything else?

And then a soft voice broke him out of the shell he was in. He wasn’t alone. In the midst of his family life crashing down around him one thing remained: Helena. She was his family. They were a family. The image he had of his parents might have been a delusion but the image he had of Helena was not close to that. He knew Helena. He knew every detail of her life and how she acted when she was angry and when she was sad. Edgar knew every flaw. There were no secrets. There was nothing to disappoint him. There was no false security. Helena was the one real thing he had. He wasn’t alone. 

The sobbing quieted and Edgar allowed her to sit close, letting her words soothe him. They weren’t going to be like them. He wasn’t his father. They were a team. The last part was what really struck a chord with Edgar, however, I will always be by your side even without a piece of paper and even if I don’t share your name. If a statement could make him feel safe that was it right there. The only thing Helena had ever asked from him was to marry her. The only thing she had wanted was for them to share a name. And here she was promising him that she was going nowhere even if he didn’t give her that. That was the bad part of in good and in bad. Helena was willing to stay with him through the bad, even when it was not required of her. 

It hadn’t crossed Edgar’s mind in the last ten minutes to call off the wedding. However, if he was being honest, he hadn’t put much thought into the wedding within the last few months. He regarded it simply as Helena’s thing. Something she wanted and out of duty and love for her he would do it. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to marry Helena, it was that Edgar didn’t see a point in marrying her. Who cared if they stood up and said fancy vows? Shared a kiss and then a last name? They would both be Bones but she would still be Helena and he would still be Edgar. What did it matter? 

But it did. 

It was as if something came over Edgar and suddenly all thoughts of his father was out of his head. As if he had just awoken from a dream. Marriage wasn’t about sharing a name but instead about sharing a life. They weren’t legally binding themselves, but emotionally tying to one another. The vows weren’t to show their families how they felt, but instead promises to one another. The wedding might have been a show, but the marriage was just for them. It was as if someone had flipped a switch in Edgar’s brain because for the first time he actually wanted to marry Helena. Not for duty. Not for her happiness. Not for anything except for the fact that Edgar Bones could not spend one more evening without her.

“Give me your ring” Edgar demanded quickly, frantically shoving himself up. He might have looked crazy demanding things after crying just minutes ago and before Helena could even respond Edgar was physically removing the ring from her left hand. 

Moving from her side Edgar came to kneel in front of her, unlike the last time he proposed, holding the ring out in front of her face that she had now been wearing for months. “Marry me” the words came out more of a command than Edgar had intended, and softening his eyes Edgar took her hand in his bad hand, ignoring the pain it took to so much as move it. “Marry me” he started again, his tone much gentler than it had before, “I don’t know what I was thinking or feeling before right now about us getting married, but it’s all changed. I don’t want to marry you because it’ll make you happy or because we’ll have the same last name, not anymore. Your happiness is important to me, very important to me, but this is about so much more. Marry me because I only want to have you beside me when things go bad. Marry me because when things are good I only want to share them with you. Marry me because you are the only person I want to make vows to. Tonight if I learned anything at all it is that you are the only person in my life that I can depend on and the only one that I need in my life. The rest of them can disappear but as long as I have you, I will never be alone. Marry me so that I can spend the rest of my life proving to you the very same. As long as we have one another, we don’t need anyone else. Fuck what our parents want, Helena. Fuck our wedding, fuck the linen, fuck the bloody colours they made us pick out. None of that matters. What matters is you. You are all that matters. So marry me tonight. I will floo us to Zimbabwe if it means we can get married tonight for I cannot spend one more day not being your husband, and without you being my wife. So, please, what do you say, Helena, will you marry me?” 

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

littlestbones:

It was one thing to keep her emotions under control while at work, another to force herself into believing she was fine. The worst part was the crumpling feeling that accompanied laying eyes on her brother. There was a beat then Amelia unceremoniously dropped the kitten to the floor, promptly flinging herself into Edgar and holding on to him until she felt ready to look him in the eye without the risk of her voice betraying her.

“Thank you,” The words came out in a whisper, Amelia struggling to keep her gaze on him. Her shoulders shook and she took several steadying breaths, only looking up again once she was certain she would not burst into tears. “I— I’m not hungry.” She knew she would need to eat eventually but the events of the day left her without an appetite.

She released Edgar then took a step back, smoothing her work shirt out then running her hand through her hair in an attempt to regain the little composure she had left.

“I fucked up, Eddie,” Amelia sighed and pressed her tongue against her cheek. “And before you— I have already heard enough from Gwenog and just about everyone else that is no longer working at the Ministry. I don’t need to know I have disappointed you from keeping my position there on top of everyone else.”

Realizing she was rambling caused Amelia to pause and shake her head, not giving Edgar a chance to ask questions.

“I took a position at the new department for the sake of being in the know of things and Gwen hasn’t talked to me in over a week.” She bit her lip to keep quiet, not trusting herself to continue without displaying too much emotion.

There was something to be said about how Amelia was feeling by the way she threw herself at him. They weren’t overly touchy siblings, never had and probably never would. Edgar couldn’t remember the last time he had hugged his sister short of a quick side hug out of politeness in passing. Bracing himself so he didn’t stumble back Edgar wrapped his arms around Amelia, holding her until she was ready to stand again. 

“You’re eating” Edgar told her firmly, as he stepped into the apartment and shut the door behind them. She may not have been hungry but if Edgar didn’t make her eat now, merlin only knew when she would actually eat again. Edgar knew his sister too well. 

As Amelia began to speak, rambling and not making any sense Edgar wanted to tell her to slow down until the point finally escaped and they were left in silence. Opening his mouth Edgar wanted to give her a piece of his mind. How could she? Join the new department? Aid the Ministry in the blatant crimes it was committing? But it wasn’t his place to lecture her. By the look on Amelia’s face Edgar knew that she was aware of that all. So instead he closed his mouth and simply continued to the kitchen, pulling out two plates and beginning to place food onto them.

“She’ll come around” Edgar finally told Amelia, “You have to believe that she’ll come to understand. Gwen’s not stupid, I’m sure she’ll realize soon enough that this decision has nothing to do with your actual beliefs” he explained bringing the plates of food back to her living room and handing one to her. “‘Melia, I know you’re not a monster who would actually support any of that garbage. Our father might be a monster. But you’re not. Gwen knows that, she’s probably just still upset by the whole thing”. 

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

littlestbones:

It was a knock to her confidence that day that brought Amelia to breaking the near three-week-long silence between her and Edgar. She had yet to find a chance to see all of her family as it was (outside of praying to whoever was listening that she wasn’t going to walk in on her father and the secretary in a compromising position when she went to visit him) since work was keeping her busy. The incident with her father had happened enough times to make her consider asking for a pensieve to get the image out of her head.

Sadly, her father’s affair was not the cause of her lacking confidence. There were whispers when she grabbed her coffee that morning and several scoffs from people that she once trusted and considered acquaintances. One went as far as using the word traitor when she passed them on her way out. It left her quite shaken and resulted in her coffee being wasted and her getting through two hours of work before she claimed she felt ill and was excused for the rest of the day. 

She arrived at her flat and carelessly threw her bag aside, the folder with ‘Office for the Protection of Muggleborn Children’ etched across it in silver lettering sent flying across the floor. A quick text message was sent to Edgar with the word “urgent” getting used in an attempt to get him to her flat sooner.

Fluff watched her with slight interest from where he perched on one of the kitchen cupboards, the new kitten having made a game out of chasing after Amelia’s feet and batting at her shoelaces each time she stopped. A knock at the door made the two jump then she stooped down to get a tight grip on the tiny cat, her free hand shaking when she went to open the door.

“Oh thank Merlin,” She exhaled then stepped aside. “I was starting to think you weren’t going to show.”

@edgaralexander-bones

There wasn’t a question that Edgar Bones loved his sister very much. Her well being had always been a top priority to him even when he was continents away. They were family and family was always important. However, Amelia was an adult and an adult who had proved time and time again that she was more than self sufficient. She didn’t need her brother babysitting her, or checking up on her. If they didn’t talk for three weeks it wasn’t weird because Amelia was busy and Edgar knew that if the time came that she needed him, she would call. 

His morning had been spent directing willowy girls all while dealing with the headache that came from closing down a city block for a photo shoot instead of just shooting in a studio. He was sick of these urban fashion shoots trying to look authentic all while causing him to prematurely gray.

 “Ma’am, you’re in my shot”

“Sir I get you’re trying to get to work but can you please move to the left”

Luckily he had been packing up the end of his equipment when the Urgent message came through and after dropping off his things at his own home Edgar made his way to Amelia’s flat. Things had changed a lot since last time he had seen Amelia. A thin silver band was now at home on his left hand to match Helena’s, and his knuckles were still bruised from the confrontation with his father the evening prior. 

Knocking on the door with his good hand Edgar was surprised how quickly Amelia answered the door. She didn’t look good. Stressed was probably the better word. Then again Amelia typically looked stressed, however this seemed worse than usual. “You said it was urgent, so here I am” he told her stepping into the apartment, “I figure if we hadn’t talked in three weeks and you were telling me it was urgent, I probably should show up” he explained before holding up a bag of food he had picked up on his way over. “Chinese food if you care to partake”. 

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

❂ ❧ △ ☾

❂

There is nothing Edgar likes more than clean sheets. It’s a weird thing for him because until Helena he literally owned one pair of sheets but, god willing he had an actual washing machine and dryer, at times he used to wash his sheets every single day. Not because they were dirty but because there was nothing better than falling asleep in clean sheets. 

❧

Edgar’s favorite food, hands down, is pho. He had it a few times in London but when he lived in Vietnam briefly he fell in love and is on the constant hunt for a good pho place in London that can even sort of compare to the food he had in Vietnam. So far it hasn’t happened, but he’s still hoping.

△

Sex nearly got Edgar Bones expelled at seventeen. After losing his virginity at 15, Edgar had a few girls he slept with while at Hogwarts. Nothing special, nothing notable. Most of the girls were very giggly and didn’t want anyone else to know they were having sex so it was very low key. However, in his seventh year he became involved with another student who didn’t quite want to be low key. Under the covers while his dorm mates were at dinner wasn’t good enough and they got caught having sex outside the castle one evening. Breaking curfew, nefarious activities, and endangering themselves were just a few of the things on the list of why they should be expelled, however luckily Dumbledore found the whole thing a bit funnier than Edgar’s head of house and let him off with detention for the rest of the year.

☾

Edgar needs to sleep in the complete dark. He’s very particular about where and how he sleeps and usually requires heavy curtains on his windows when he sleeps during the day. Even the smallest crack of light under a door disturbs him so even having his cell phone in the room while he sleeps is out of the question.

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

♬ ⊗

♬

When Edgar was seven he went through a phase where he didn’t want to be a wizard. He would go around telling his parents how he wanted to be just like the muggle kids and it wasn’t fair they got to attend school while his mother home schooled him. He was rebellious and claimed that magic was stupid and he didn’t need magic in his life. That was until one day while playing he fell out of a tree and broke his collarbone. Typically it was something that either his mother would heal at home or take him to St. Mungos. He was a seven year old boy and with magic had become reckless, fearless, over the years and had more than his fair share of injuries. Except his mother decided to teach him a lesson and marched him straight to the muggle hospital. Edgar wasn’t allowed to play or move his arm for six weeks and never spoke of wishing to be a muggle ever again.

⊗

Not going to lie, this was really tough. Ed’s not scared of much. He loves snakes, spiders, flying, lions, and pretty much everything else most people are scared of. He doesn’t have a phobia, persay, but instead has this weird thing about concrete. He hates the sound of anything scraping against concrete and even the thought of it makes him feel very uncomfortable. You won’t catch him walking on concrete without shoes on and he won’t drag things (like the trash bin) across the concrete. It extends to tile too, he’s very particular about the finish on tile and if it resembles concrete too much he can’t be comfortable. It’s not a phobia, it just makes him kind of cringe. 

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

{from @littlestbones of course}

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

I’m With You | Edgar & Helena

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

hb-helenaofwales:

In a few short minutes, their world – or at least Edgar’s world – had changed. Helena sucked in a breath as she turned around, putting all of the makeup save a lipstick into the cabinet with a swish of her wand before she set it, too, down on the vanity. This was uncharted territory for the young woman, who had never questioned the status of her own parents’ marriage. She’d always known that her parents were not in love, but they had seemed so committed to their family that she had never questioned it. Now, though, she wondered if there were skeletons in their closet that were about to come out if she pushed far enough. She didn’t want to know the truth; it did not always set one free.

“Not for very long,” she admitted as she fiddled with her engagement ring, twisting it around her finger as she leaned against the back of the vanity, facing him. “It was just a comment Amelia made a few weeks ago…and once I knew what to look for, it wasn’t very hard to see it for myself. He…appeared besotted at one point. I didn’t get the impression it was…well, if it were just physical, I doubt she would have been around so often.” She made a bit of a face at that, finding the very thought inappropriate for a multitude of reasons. It was such a bloody cliché. Couldn’t his father at least be original in his choice of affairs?

But this wasn’t really about her, or her opinion on the entire thing – she could very well be wrong about her impression anyway. No, this was about the fact that Edgar was unaware of something that had completely shifted his paradigm regarding his family and the world they inhabited. And all Helena wanted to do was make it better for him, even as she knew that she couldn’t. She reached out and squeezed his hand tightly, moving closer to press a kiss to his temple, taking a moment to breathe in his familiar scent.

“She didn’t say anything to indicate she thought you were unaware,” was all Helena was finally able to eke out, the room feeling so much heavier than it had moments before. She hated this. “It’s…not really something to talk about, I guess. Not with families and names like ours.” It was true; extramarital liaisons were not something completely suppressed in pureblood society, but they were not exactly paraded around either. Helena would be willing to bet that Edgar’s mother knew about this,  or at least suspected, though she wasn’t going to approach the subject from that point of view.

There was a brief moment of silence before Helena spoke again, her hand still enclosed in his. “I’m sorry you found out this way.” She was even sorry she was the one to deliver the news, not that she’d admit that. After the Ministry fiasco, Helena did not keep things from Edgar, especially not things this important.

“What now?” she asked him quietly. “Do you want to change and we’ll order in and just forget about everything tonight?”

Edgar didn’t know what to think. What to believe. He knew that Helena would never lie to him about something this severe, nor would she make a joke of something that she knew wasn’t true. He didn’t doubt for one second that his father was having an affair but it still left him with the question: why?

Growing up in the Bones house meant two things: Ministry and Family first. Many time growing up Edgar had to cancel plans with friends over Christmas or Summer break in order to spend time with his family. His parents were very formal and most casual dinners with them involved place settings other families would only use for special occasions. For years he thought that it was normal to wear a suit jacket to Tuesday dinner. But they were a family. His parents had high expectations for all their children and fights were not allowed within the walls of the family home. Early on Edgar knew he was different from his siblings. They seemed to fit seamlessly with their father’s view of an ideal family while Edgar tended to elicit sighs and eye rolls. He was more interested in skateboarding and playing in the dirt than learning laws and perfecting his handwriting. But they were a family. Family and Ministry first. 

This revelation contradicted everything his father had ever presented. All those lectures about how girls would come and go, friends would leave, but his family was here to stay were false. If family was first then what was this affair? An arrangement? All those late nights at the office or weekend business trips, were any of them truth? Or had they all been blatant lies for him to spend time with his mistress. Though they were cut from clearly different cloths Edgar had looked up to his father, and he still did to this day. But not now. How could he wish to be the kind of father his own was when his father couldn’t even stay loyal to his own wife? 

Edgar didn’t have the cleanest past. Sometimes he purposely didn’t define relationships because he didn’t want just one person. Sometimes he broke up with girls because their friends were more interesting. Edgar wasn’t an angel, but he would never do this. When he asked Helena to marry him that was a commitment. A commitment to her and the baby. A commitment that he was giving himself wholly to her and she to him in return. There were never going to be any other girls. The most beautiful woman in the world could walk into his house right now and Edgar would ask her to leave because he made a promise to Helena and promises were not meant to be broken. Marriages were not meant to be exploited. What was the purpose of even being married if you didn’t devote yourself to your partner?

As Helena moved closer to him Edgar stood up, stepping away from her and breaking contact. He felt claustrophobic. His skin felt hot and itchy. He felt like his chest was closing in. Was he coming down with a fever or was this normal? Taking a deep breath Edgar let out a weak “I’m sorry”, he didn’t mean to deflect her affection for she was only trying to help-he just couldn’t take it right this moment. “I just can’t breathe. I need air” and with that he bolted back to their bedroom flinging open the window and leaning against the sill for a moment allowing the cool evening air to wash over him. 

After a minute his skin didn’t feel so warm and the room didn’t feel so small. Standing up a hand went through his dark hair. “I can’t just forget about this, Helena” his words were a bit snippier than he meant them to sound, “I’m sorry. I’m not snapping at you. I just-I can’t just sit downstairs and pretend that you didn’t just tell me that my father is sleeping around. I can’t go to the Ministry party. I can’t see him. But I can’t sit here either” it was confusing and he knew he wasn’t making sense but it was hard to make sense when everything in your mind had turned to mush. 

“He has the audacity to tell me how I should act. The audacity to think he can give me advice on being married. Don’t let her sway your opinion, don’t always give into her, don’t let her turn you into we” Edgar mocked as he began pacing the room, “You’re a man, Edgar, start acting like one. Having Helena stay at home is the best option, she can take care of the baby while you get a real job. You’re too passive, Edgar, women don’t like passive men” his words getting louder and louder as he spoke, “Stay in London, Edgar, you can’t move your family around-you’re being selfish. Your silly pictures aren’t going to give your child a good enough life, let me get you a job at the Ministry. You have to get married before the baby is born, it’s tradition. Be a man, Edgar, toughen up or she’s going to leave you” as his voice got louder and louder his pacing became more erratic until all his anger manifested itself as his fist went flying through their bedroom wall with a satisfying crack.

Now his hand felt on fire but as Edgar slid down the wall the blood and mangled mess he had made was the last thing on his mind. The wall could be fixed later. His hand could be fixed later. Resting on the floor Edgar’s face fell into his good hand as the tears began. Tears of anger. Tears of hurt. Tears of fear. He hadn’t cried like this in years. He wasn’t a crier. If there was one thing pureblood ideal that had been beat into his black sheep mind it was that crying was shameful but at this moment there was nothing else he could do. “It’s all a lie” he sobbed, his broad shoulders shaking. “28 years and it’s all a lie” god he felt like his heart had been ripped out and run over, and there was nothing that could change that. “They’re the only marriage I know. I wanted us to be like them. How can I get married if the only way I know how to act is a lie?” he asked, “I looked up to him. I asked for his advice. I took his advice. How could he do this?”

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

I’m With You | Edgar & Helena

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

hb-helenaofwales:

“Perhaps,” she said with a smile, soft and tight. While she got along rather well with Edgar’s parents, she still did not like the comments, even more so when they were directed at him and intended to wound. Helena could be very easy-going at times, but how Edgar was often treated by his family was something she only abided so as not to cause more problems between them. It was nice to have family close-by, especially with the baby coming, but there were moments when Helena wished they lived anywhere but Britain – this was one of them.

She rolled her eyes at Edgar’s reassurance, though she found it rather sweet that he made sure she feel included in the larger Bones family. “We’re not going to get a divorce, though we have to be married before we can do that anyway,” she told him with a shake of her head, her blind faith in their relationship evident, unshakable. “And you’re the only reason I suffer through Sunday dinners and you know it.” Her lips curved as she adjusted her necklace and earrings before finishing her makeup.

This was not what she’d expected.

The comment had been off the cuff, of course, though it wasn’t anything she’d thought Edgar didn’t already know. She’d never asked, of course, but that was more because it simply wasn’t her place to. Who asked one’s fiancé if they were aware of their parent’s affair? And besides, they’d had much more important things to consider moving forward in their lives.

Helena still had a few friends in the Ministry and after she’d found out about his father’s affair, she’d asked a couple of discreet questions from those she trusted. Apparently she’d not only been blind – she’d been willfully so. Once she knew what to look for, it was obvious what had been going on.

“Shit.” He didn’t know, that much was clear.

“I know we haven’t spoken about it, but I assumed it was because you didn’t want to,” she murmured as she finished her eyeliner. “Amelia made a comment a few weeks ago about it when I met her for lunch and we saw them at another table. I figured you knew and didn’t want me to think even less of him so I didn’t say anything.” Helena took a breath, biting her lip, unsure of just how much she should divulge for it wasn’t her secret to tell.

But Edgar was her partner in all things and she would not keep something from him. Helena set her eyeliner down onto the vanity. “He’s been sleeping with his secretary for years. Apparently, it’s a bit of an open secret – or was, in his part of the Ministry.”

She waited a moment, letting out a heavy breath.

“I didn’t realize you didn’t know. I’m sorry.”

Was his whole life a lie?

Okay that was an exaggeration. His whole life was not a lie, but a good portion of it was. It came as more of a shock than any news he had received in years, well short of Helena’s pregnancy. Edgar felt like he was drowning as the explanation left Helena’s mouth. His father was having an affair. Everyone knew he was having an affair. Everyone but him, clearly. 

How could his father be having an affair? His father was not a bad looking man, but above all how could he do this to his mother? His mother was a goddess. So far out of his father’s league it wasn’t funny. She was a model and had always been the subject of much teasing to Edgar, much to his chagrin. The only reason that his mother even so much as paid his father five minutes of time was because.... and it all became clear. There were some things in life worth more than attractiveness and money and power were one of them. His father had both. 

The person in question was one that Edgar knew relatively well. She had been in the year below him at Hogwarts and was pretty enough, vapid but the kind of girl you didn’t hang out with to have a conversation with. Edgar had never been interested in her and had always wondered why his father hired her of all people. There were plenty of more qualified, smarter prospects. But it made sense now. Edgar had been suspicious early on that she had only gotten the job because she was nice to look at, but he had never thought more into it. She must have been good at something if his father kept her around. Who cared how good she was at her work if all she had to do was fuck her boss?

Sitting on the edge of the tub Edgar didn’t know what to do with himself now that he had this revelation. “You knew?” he asked, but there was no anger in his voice. He wasn’t angry at Helena. This was not like the last time where she knowingly kept a secret from him and had lied in the process. Edgar could tell by her actions and the inflection in her voice that she honestly thought he knew. It made sense for it not to be spoken about. Most people did not like talking about affairs especially involving their parents and she was probably waiting on him to bring it up before broaching the topic. 

“Amelia knew? Why didn’t she te-” Edgar fell silent because Helena didn’t even need to answer that question. Amelia didn’t tell him because he was never around. The past ten years Edgar had spent more time running away from his family than spending time with it so of course Amelia wouldn’t tell him. Why would she? So that her brother disappeared and never came home? She wasn’t stupid and must have known his instant reaction would be to completely disappear off the radar. Even since moving back to London he had been far too busy to really listen to family politics. He had a job that required his attention, a fiancee, and a baby on the way. Edgar had put everything above his family for years. There was never a good time to tell him and he couldn’t blame her for keeping it a secret. 

Edgar didn’t know if he wanted to cry or laugh. There had never been an indication that his parents were anything but happy. They went on vacation together, lived in the same house, slept in the same bed. There were no warning signs that his father was sleeping around. And his father brought the secretary into his house. Edgar had wondered why throughout the year his father would bring her to events and now it made sense. Was the townhouse he helped her buy an investment like he had said? Or was it hush money? There were so many questions Edgar wanted to ask but he couldn’t see his father. Not now. Not like this. 

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

I’m With You | Edgar & Helena

[edgaralexander-bones-blog]

hb-helenaofwales:

The dress Helena had purchased for the Ministry’s Atrium Reopening was a bold red, much more Gryffindor than she currently felt at the moment. The empire waist and flowing skirt hid much of her burgeoning bump, though the slit on the side made her feel her age instead of a decade older. And yet, regardless of how nice she looked, the young woman had little desire to finish getting ready.

“We don’t have to do anything we don’t want to,” she said, not for the first time. “What are they going to do if we don’t attend? Cut us off? Threaten to not attend our wedding? Fine – then we can end up doing what we wanted to begin with.” She shook her head as she straightened the straps.

The thought of even pretending to support the Ministry after what they had done put a bad taste in Helena’s mouth. But Edgar’s father had pushed them into going to the auction and so she had put on the dress, charmed her heels to be more comfortable, and was currently threading a pair of her great-grandmother’s earrings, that likely cost more than their house did, through her earlobes. A matching necklace lay on her collarbone and her hair was twisted into an updo that she’d only been able to achieve after going through a book of beauty spells.

“Is that so?” Her voice grew flatter at the thought and she fought the urge to snort. “And what, in your father’s esteemed opinion, are we?” she asked, her brow arching as she gestured to herself and her stomach, which had grown even more in the past couple of weeks as the baby had become more active. To be quite frank, the thought that Edgar’s father had such opinions unsettled her, especially since she had learned quite a bit about his proclivities in the past few months. And, really, once she knew what to look for, it hadn’t been hard to see them for herself, the innocuous touches at public events, the look in one’s eye.

“And you’re right, love,” she said as she moved closer to the bed, leaning down to press a quick kiss to his lips before she put her makeup on. “You do tell me no a lot.” Her lips quirked teasingly. “And I never complain about it, especially if it keeps us in bed longer.”

The next words came out quickly as she moved back toward the en suite. She was only slightly worried she’d be stepping on dangerous ground now, moving toward something she hadn’t actually spoken to him about, not that it had really been her place to bring it up.

“I’d argue that your father has a good enough reason to never tell her no,” she pointed out as she began to apply the makeup to her face, taking a moment to carefully put on her eyeliner. “Especially considering I don’t think he’s stopped sleeping with his secretary even after he’s stopped working at the Ministry.”

Edgar probably should have just kept his mouth shut. There was already enough tension in the family and he didn’t need to add to it, which he had unknowingly done while telling Helena about the conversation with his father. It was just that Edgar didn’t take the comments as personally as Helena did. Sure what his father said was offensive, insinuating that Helena was less family than his parents, but Edgar let things like that roll off his shoulders. His father had said worse to him and would probably say worse in the future; It was just how his father was. Edgar didn’t feel his father was a bad man, not at all, he was just the type of man who didn’t think he had to hold his tongue.

Growing up Edgar had often been on the receiving end of his father’s lectures and it continued throughout his life. Even at 26 his father still felt the need to lecture him. These days it was no longer about getting detentions or skipping class, but instead about getting a girl pregnant and not having clear career ambitions. Edgar’s father was proud that of all people he could have knocked up it was at least Helena. She had a good name and no one had anything bad to say about her, for the most part. After her exodus from the Ministry his father blamed him for what happened. It had to be his influence that had caused the prim and polished Miss Parkinson to lose her cool.

The comments didn’t faze Edgar but he knew they bothered Helena. She was far more protective of their family and took his father’s comments more to heart than he ever did. But that wasn’t Helena’s fault, any normal people would be offended by the things his father said it was just that Edgar had grown so used to hearing them that they didn’t even register as offensive anymore. He knew his father meant nothing by it, it was just encouragement to get Edgar to go. As soon as Edgar and Helena showed up his father would be at their side praising Helena and treating her as if she was his own daughter, it was just how his father was. 

“You know he just likes to get under my skin” Edgar sighed, the goofy grin still remaining on his face. “Trust me, he’d be more willing to kick me off his will than you. To be honest, if we ever get divorced he’ll probably never speak to me again and still invite you to Sunday dinners”, it was true Edgar’s parents liked Helena far more than they liked him. Maybe not his mum, his mum would always have a soft spot for her firstborn but his father was definitely biased in Helena’s favor. Edgar wouldn’t have it any other way. 

At her comment Edgar chuckled, “Good one” he told her rolling his eyes, it wasn’t odd for either of them to take a hit at his father’s expense and Edgar wasn’t offended by her snarky comment. Until he registered what she said. Flipping over to his stomach Edgar paused “Wait, what did you say?” his tone changed from playful to serious before getting out of bed and following her into the bathroom, “What do you mean sleeping with his secretary?” Edgar asked trying to decipher if Helena was joking or not, her face held no indication she was kidding but the joke itself didn’t seem right.