It might’ve driven some other couples apart, but competition was the basis of their relationship. They’d broken the ice rock climbing, bonded over a game of truth or dare, and were now about to face off in a carnival game. With most people Evan preferred to win but was a gracious loser if the outcome was unfortunate. However, with Harper, it didn’t really matter. Either he won, which was a positive, or he got to watch her win, which was also a positive.
It was going to be their bed soon enough, but with his parents especially, moving in together would have to wait until after the wedding. “The hippogriff it is. You’re welcome to try to beat me, but I think we both know who has the better arm in this relationship,” he teased, playfully leaning into her as they made their way to the booth.
There were several lanes for set up across the stall inviting the competitive play Harper and Evan thrived in. Evan handed the vendor the entry fee and once the steam whistle blew, they were off. After the first ball was launched, it wasn’t as speedy as their start would’ve suggested. The participants were given a certain number of tries rather than an unlimited number in a limited time frame, so after his first, all out throw, he took his time and focused on precision and accuracy rather than speed.
Harper was just as quick to start as he was, but after a few throws he noticed her fade from his peripheral. There were so many possibilities as to why she might’ve walked away from their competition, so Evan didn’t even try to guess. Instead, he just focused on the task in front of him and winning his future wife the cute stuffed hippogriff.
She threw two balls, one hard enough to knock down a pair of bottles, the next only knocking down one – Evan was going to beat her here. It was hardly a fair fight, and if her objective had been winning that might have caused her to hyper focus, to give him a run for his money. Actually, if her objective had been to beat him she wouldn’t have suggested this game at all. She would have steered them in the direction of that unsteady looking ladder or something that required a bit more precision than this. Her only goal here had been distraction, and perhaps a new plushie.
After her third toss she glanced over her shoulder, her face hardening as she saw Liza walking in their direction, looking somewhere between focused and determined.
She didn’t even think about it. She dropped the ball she had been about to toss at her remaining bottles and walked off quickly, without saying anything to Evan. With any luck she could steer his sister in a different direction and be back at his side before he fully noticed what was happening. She crossed the crowded walkway in just a few steps, grabbed Liza’s arm, and pulled her out of sight, between two tents.
Harper’s job was primarily persuasion and flattery with a healthy dose of paperwork, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t perfectly capable of defending herself if the situation called for it; but she highly doubted Liza did anything particularly threatening – she looked more like a scared puppy than anything else. It wasn’t anyone’s physical well-being she was particular worried about – all parties involved were perfectly capable of taking care of herself. Somehow, in the past few months, she found herself caring about the emotional well-being of the Rosiers though. And the irony of how invested she was becoming in a family she hadn’t even wanted to be a part of just six months ago wasn’t lost on her, even if it was something she’d like to move past.
Once they were safely out of sight she dropped Liza’s arm, taking a deliberate step back, but making sure she was between her and the exit to this little hideout. Arguably, caging in someone frightened wasn’t typically a wise decision, but maybe a light duel would be a nice way to break up the monotony. They were supposed to be in a war, but life had been remarkably peaceful lately. Almost like it was normal. She didn’t particularly want to fight Liza, but it might not be a bad idea to remind the other side who they were dealing with. Either way, she wouldn’t strike first. She just wanted to talk.
“What are you doing, Liza?” Her voice wasn’t unfriendly, but clearly exasperated. “I get it. Trust me, I get it. I’m all for being your own person – I actively ran from all of this for years. But you made your choice – why do you keep throwing it in the faces of the people that care about you? You shouldn’t be here, and if you have to be you certainly should be keeping your distance.” She paused. “Unless that’s your goal? To hurt people. If so, it’s more than a little sick. And trust me when I tell you you’ve done a fine job of that without being here tonight.”
Liza was biting her lip, wondering what would happen. She had no plans on approaching her brother. Whilst in another world she would have, she actually had no intention of speaking to him right now. There chat at Hogsmeade a few weeks ago had just showed what their relationship was going to be. And she had no intentions of having that repeated at all. It had hurt her heart already, and she wasn’t about to let herself get upset again. Not when she’d been having a great time tonight.
But, as she watched the pair walk off to play a game, Liza knew she needed an ally. She needed someone who could support her right now. She looked around, trying to find someone. She could have easily gone into find Fabian, but she didn’t want to explain to him why she looked upset. Luckily, as she looked around, just beyond where her brother and Harper were, was someone Fabian had introduced her to earlier on in the day. That would do. Someone who could distract her, and hopefully keep her safe if needed.
So she began walking to them. Liza wasn’t actually paying attention to what Evan and Harper were doing now. She didn’t really care, and just wanted to get to this other person. Of course, it didn’t occur ot Liza that it probably looked like she was going to go up to her brother. She frowned, as suddenly Harper was in front of her, and pulling her away. “Harper.... what the.... get off of me” She murmured, trying to pull her arm away. What the hell was Harper doing!
Liza frowned, noting that Harper had placed herself in the way of the exit back to the main area. Maybe it was Harper she needed to be wary off all the time? Her wand was out, but her arm was relaxed down at her side. She didn’t want to hurt Harper, but she wouldn’t hesitate to defend herself if she needed too. Liza wasn’t about to sit back and let people hurt her. “Why shouldn’t I be here? I don’t recall it being the Evan and Harper show? It’s for a charity. I can be here if I want to be here, just like everyone else in the wizarding community” And she wanted to be here. She had every right to be here.
Liza laughed, rolling her eyes. “I wasn’t even coming over to you guys. Like I’d put myself through that again.” She murmured, her eyes narrowed as she looked at the other woman. Maybe she had been scared before, and maybe she knew Harper really wasn’t one to fight with. But nor was Liza, and yes, she’d left the Death Eaters. But she still wasn’t someone that went down easily.
“I was actually heading over to a friend before you rudely grabbed onto me.” Which was highly uncalled for. She wasn’t even going to talk to Evan. She didn’t want too. It was clear he didn’t want to talk to her, and she wasn’t going to be making the first move anymore. She was tired of trying to make other people happy by compromising her own happiness. She missed him more than anything else, and losing him had hurt the most. But she didn’t regret what she had done.
“The last thing I want to do is hurt people, especially him. Which is the whole reason why I wasn’t coming over to Evan. I love him still, of course I do. He’s my big brother. He might not feel the same about me anymore, but I wouldn’t do anything to cause him pain..... or more pain anyway.” Since you know. She kind of had caused him a lot of pain in her decisions. “Our relationship isn’t the same anymore, I get that. It’s why I’m staying away, and letting him be happy.” And it killed her to not be part of his happiness anymore. But that was life.
“If you’d waited long enough.... you would have seen that without having to man handle me.”
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