florencerosier:
Florence nodded, the ghost of a smile floating across her face before disappearing entirely. She pushed off of the desk, standing upright, and held her hand out to Athena. “I can apparate us to my workspace. There are a few things there you can obliterate.” Athena’s trust meant the world to Florence. She had left the idea of a biological family behind a long time ago. In her line of work, children and spouses felt like little more than weak points to be exploited. She supposed, in her own way, she’d transferred whatever maternal urges she could have possessed onto the young women of the Knights. It infuriated her that they had been violated so violently, and that she was as useless as the aurors in discovering who had done it. The least she could do was provide Athena the opportunity to feel powerful again.
“Of course.” Her voice was even, her tone smooth, but underneath it all was a fierce care. “I’ve been tinkering with a few test dummies. It’d only feel appropriate for you to be the first to test them out.” If there was going to be another war–and it was looking more and more like that was the case–they would need to be prepared. Training was paramount.
Athena paused for just a moment then took Florence’s hand. “I’m more than happy to take them off your hands,” she said, already feeling better. Athena hadn’t realized how much the rally had been weighing on her, and now that she had a way to deal with what had happened, it was like that weight had been lifted and suddenly she wasn’t hunched over anymore. She felt like Atlas, carrying the world on her shoulders sometimes, especially with the way that her family expected her to take over the mantle of Madam Lestrange sooner rather than later, and she wasn’t sure if she was ready for it. Athena had plenty to weigh her down; she didn’t need to feel this loss of control like just another stone in her satchel any longer.
“Test dummies?” she asked once they landed in Florence’s workshop, looking around once before she spotted them. “Planning for another war?” she asked, walking up to one and running her fingertips along its metallic shoulder. Athena hadn’t fought in the first war—losing her brother had been enough to steer her away from it—but now that she had chosen a side, she supposed it was time to dust off her dueling chops. She could feel the war brewing at the fringes; it was only a matter of time until it made it to the mainstream.














