Marlene slowed at the edge of the table, her gaze dropping to the scattered chess pieces before lifting back to Edith with mild amusement. âWasnât planning on stealing your seat,â she said, a crooked smile tugging at her mouth, âbut now Iâm curious about the sort of game that requires bargaining with the pieces.â She tilted her head toward the board. âTell me, was it a fair fight, or did you absolutely destroy them?â
Edith's lips twitched in an almost smile. She really shouldn't be seen talking to Marlene and enjoying it. Marlene was brave and capable but Edith didn't want to be the reason she got hurt. No way would she ever want that.
"I handicap myself." She admitted as the pieces protested loudly. One even threw a tiny stool at her, which she caught easily. "But I normally do that anyhow. Otherwise the games go too fast, y'know? It's like watching The Harpies play. You know they're going to win."
Night had become Bella's work hours. Not that she actually had a job, of course, she's been fired from every workplace she'd entered. The Deatheaters had become a full time career, and she'd dare say she was far more dedicated to it than most people were to their careers.
Tonight, she was scoping out the Ministry, looking at comings and goings, searching for weak spots. Despite regular being out at night, it seemed she was getting sloppy. Shed failed to hear someone sneaking up on her.
She turned, not knowing if she would find friends or foes. "Evening," Bella said, feigning nonchalance. "Out for a walk?" Her tone was calm but her expression was guarded.
It wasn't abnormal for Edith to end up staying late at work, and it wasn't a habit she imagined breaking any time soon. Her work with Death Eaters drained her, work made it easier to keep going. The people who had scared her as a child before she got to school terrified her now but she could never show it.
She blinked when she saw Bellatrix outside. It was the closest she would get to showing any surprise. "Oh, hello. No, I just finished work. Yours has clearly just begun." She tilted her head back towards the building. "Do you need me to let you in? I have after-hour permissions and no one would even notice if I brought a guest."
Sometimes for the challenge Edith played against her own chess set. Granted it didn't normally go well for the set but it was always fun. She had even trained (begged) her set not to swear when it was out in public. That had really decreased the number of parks she got kicked of.
"Oh," she said as she caught the eye of someone hovering near her table, "I just finished up. Give me a minute to clean up, and we can sit. Or stroll. Or whatever fits your fancy."
time and location: early in the morning, near diagon alley
Evelyn groaned tiredly as her border collie, Cassian, jumped all over her. He was so excited to see her and to go out for a walk. Meanwhile, she had spent the entire night sweating in one of her favorite muggle clubs. "Alright, alright, I'm coming..." she murmured as she put on her auror coat over her sparkly silver dress. She changed her high heels for her comfortable combat boots. Evelyn still had her make up on, and probably some glitter on her hair as well.
She put Cassian on a leash and thanked internally that she didn't drink anything. It was a rule of hers, no one could know she attended those places because she liked them, but she could always say she had some undercover job that she couldn't speak too much about it. "Just one round and then we are coming back, I need to sleep" thank Rowena it was her day off.
She made sure to have her wand and opened the door, Cassian immediately storming out. "For fuck's sake, calm down..." she whined as she followed the dog. They walked for a couple of blocks and walked past a bakery shop. "Mmm... perhaps we should... I could do with some pastries, actually" she murmured thoughtfully, not realizing that she was blocking someone's way until her dog gently nibbled her robe.
She'd always felt a bit of a kinship with border collies. Her parents had teased her that she might as well be one when she was in school, and if she'd begged for one (with no success) for years. Now she had to resist the urge to pet every single one she saw while out and about.
Edith hovered near the dog and it's person, chewing her lip. The bakery was secondary. It wasn't as if she would turn down a baked good when pressed. But really... "Can I pet your dog?" She asked, looking down at Cassian longingly. "Sorry if it's weird, I just love border collies."
Sometimes it was a lunch break, other times a day off on the weekend that Hestia would use to browse the shops and stock up on the most necessary of items. One could never be prepared enough, determined at the very least. The witch was moving through the store, J. Pippin's a favorite of hers. Even though she could brew her own potions, there were simply things she left to the hands of a potioneer. A fancy looking bottle caught her eye.
There was a polite, almost casual tone in her voice when she picked up the bottle yet noticed the other nearby. "Did you want this one? I think it's the last." Her shoulders moved as she turned toward them. "Unless he makes the potions in various shapes and colors. At that point it's anyone's guess how many there are left."
Edith liked Hestia: she was neutral ground. Someone Edith could talk to without consequences. Someone that neither side looked too closely at, for now. Edith didn't mind a conversation that doubled as a battle field but it was nice to have a break every now and then.
"He only changes them between stocks, I've noticed." She said as she reviewed her mental calendar. "And we've still got a few days left before he rotates. I don't need that one yet, it's all yours."
+Â determined; Edith loves a good challenge and she never backs down. The only people who can really talk her down from a dumb idea are her relatives.
+ ambitious; She dreams big and she always has. Edith takes great pride in her achievements and always sets her sights high.
+Â steadfast; Edith rarely wavers in her decisions or her loyalties. She values this in other people as well.
Negative Traits:
-Â stubborn; Rather than admit defeat, Edith buckles down and stands her ground even when she knows she could be wrong.
-Â abrasive; She has never once shied away from telling someone off for something she found dumb or irritating.
-Â obsessive; Once sheâs interested in something or someone she goes full-ham, wanting to know everything there is too know as quickly and thoroughly as possible.
biography:
It doesnât matter what name Edith had when she was born, sheâs always been Edith. She knew she was a girl early, and she was blessed enough to have a family who accepted her immediately and fully. There wasnât a time she could remember being anyone other than Edith or having any other name. Her mother helped her pick her middle name and for that Edith is particularly fond of it. The middle child of three, her siblings are her favorite people in the whole world and Edith loves them completely and fiercely.
Before school, Edith had been a shy, introverted child. She loved puzzles, hide and seek, and chess, and considered growing up to become a chess master. When she got Sorted into Slytherin Edith took one look around her new peers and knew she needed to toughen up, fast. She spent the first time forcing herself to have opinions and voice them, to challenge and push back, to light up rooms she entered. It took around a year of practice before she mastered it entirely, but it left her an armored seat-of-your-pants exterior that she wouldnât let falter. She didnât consider it bravery; she considered it survival.
Spying hadnât been her first choice, but she could admit she was good at it. War was just real-life chess and she was good at chess. She had always had friends from both sides at school, and she how to compartmentalize. War was dangerous yes, but so was life. The Order had to get information from somewhere or they never stood a chance. She could handle the people she loved best hating her if it meant theyâd be safer in the long run.
