Really funny that gambit meets courier and when working together jake has to turn into a woman to disguise himself but because of shenanigans he can't turn back so eventually he's like "actually I'm jacqueline now"
main character: jacob gavin
scene: whilst riding the train home from hogwarts, jacob gavin comes to a startling realization.
--
Love.
What a strong word.
But it was this very word that Jacob contemplated as the scarlet steam engine raced across the English countryside, the rolling hills flashing by in a blur of white.
The compartment was quiet, save the gentle breathing of Gracie Gavin and the whisper of paper as Jacob turned the pages of his Defense book. And then there was Marchie, blowing warm breath on the window and rubbing the fog off with the sleeve of her sweater.
Jacob looked up, amused. "Something outside that's interesting?"
Marchie pointed, not tearing her eyes from the window. "Deer," she said quietly, a small smile on her face. "Three of them." They looked so pale and slender in the dim light of the winter day, standing erect with their eyes alert and their ears cocked to the side, searching for danger.
But the train swept by the little family of deer, leaving them far behind. Jacob sat back in his seat with a small sigh. "The wonders of nature," he laughed, his foot nudging hers as he slid his legs up onto the seat next to her.
"Shhhh," she whispered, gesturing at Gracie. "You'll wake her up."
"Gracie a heavy sleeper," Jacob said, his voice raising slightly. "She won't wake up even if I yelled."
Marchie raised her eyebrows skeptically before glancing over at Gracie with a small smile. "She looks like you," she told him softly.
It was Jacob's turn to look skeptical. "She looks like my mum," he said, leaning over to press a kiss to Gracie's head. The little girl stirred slightly, and Jacob moved back quickly.
"Sound sleeper, eh?" Marchie said, hiding a grin behind her hand.
Jacob nudged her leg with his foot. "Shut it, you," he grumbled, but a small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"Are you excited for Christmas?" Marchie asked after a moment's pause, carefully peeling the tin foil off her Chocolate Frog and crumpling it into a ball.
He nodded, leaning back in his seat. "I am," he said, then looked pointedly at her. "More excited for some things then others, but..." He shrugged and gazed out the window.
She reached over and patted his knee. "It'll turn out all right, Jacob. You'll see. Christmas is just around the corner." Her tone was optimistic, but he sensed a bit of anxiety behind those green eyes.
He leaned forward to grasp her hand assuringly. "Then we'll get through Christmas just fine, the two of us," he whispered. "I'll be there for you just like you're there for me. Okay?" She nodded, eyes closed, and squeezed his hand.
"Okay."
--
Silence filled the compartment again, and Jacob slumped down in his seat, his Defense book cast onto the floor. His eyes flickered from Gracie, who was now snuggled up next to Marchie, the little girl's head in his girlfriend's lap, to Marchie, whose hand absently stroked the golden hair on her knees.
He smiled fondly at the sight as he watched them under lidded eyes. The two had only met hours before, but they had taken to each other like a duck takes to water. He was glad that Gracie liked Marchie, and that Marchie liked Gracie - it made his life so much easier.
Marchie looked up, eyes showing concern when his pages ceased to turn rhythmically. "What's on your mind?" she asked quietly, the hand combing through Gracie's hair pausing for a moment to unwrap another Chocolate Frog.
Jacob bit the inside of his cheek. The word kept rolling through head like a heavy ball of lead - one side to the next and back again. He observed her for a moment longer, mulling over his thoughts.
Over the summer, Jacob had sat down and decided what he wanted to do - he'd be an Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries, delving deep into the inner mysteries of magic. He'd work long hours, grab a bite to eat with his work mates, then head home to do some paperwork before going to bed.
It was a mundane life, but Jacob would have been quite happy with the way he had planned things.
But with Marchie in his life, his whole persepective of after school had changed. No longer did he want to spend his whole life working away. What about getting married, and having kids, and spending his life with the people he loved?
And personally, he thought that maybe, just maybe, Marchie was the girl he'd been waiting for his entire life.
Love.
There was the ball of lead again, and a strange emotion came over him as he gazed at Marchie. You love her, a still voice whispered to him. You love Griselda Winifred Marchbanks. You love Marchie Marchbanks.
I love Marchie.
The words came as a sudden shock to him, and for a moment, he couldn't breathe as he struggled to comprehend this. But another moment passed, and he felt something grow in him.
Four months. They'd been talking for four months, and dating for two. Was it even possible to love someone that you'd only known for that long?
Of course it was.
Marchie was beautiful - not the Glamour Witch beauty that he saw on the front of every magazine, or the dazzling beauty that seemed to have enraputed the male population of Hogwarts. No, she was a quiet beauty, demure and sweet and something special that was entirely her own.
She knew exactly what to say, and exactly when to say it. He could recall the instance of his aunt begging him to come home to see his father. Marchie had taken his hand and looked him square in the eye, quietly explaining to him that Taylor Gavin was his father, he needed to at least try and talk to him. He couldn't ever remember giving in so easily, but having her sit there and run her fingers through his hair as she spoke made it all the easier.
She was brilliantly talented, even if she couldn't realize it herself. She claimed that she only took all of the classes she was enrolled in because she couldn't figure out what she wanted to do, but Jacob knew that she had a brilliant mind - she could do anything she wanted, even if she thought differently.
She was funny and witty, and always had a good comeback if he was being difficult. Whether is was a sharp word or a teasing glare, she could always make him feel better.
She was shy and timid and brave and fearless all at the same time - sometimes, he didn't quite know where the quiet Marchie stopped and the bold Marchie began. Most of the time, timid Marchie dominated, the Marchie that was often too afraid of big crowds to enjoy herself in them, the Marchie that would rather fly in solitude then face the world. But then the bold Marchie emerged occasionally, the Marchie that laughed and talked with everyone, the Marchie that wasn't afraid to stand up for what she thought was right.
He loved Marchie Marchbanks, the beautiful, wonderful, no-nonsense girl that had given him new purpose in living.
And for the first time in his young life, he wasn't worried about school, or the fact that his dad hated him, or whether Gracie would disappear on him. For once, Jacob Gavin was perfectly content.
"Jacob?" Marchie was looking at him curiously now. "Something on your mind?" she repeated.
Everything, he wanted to tell her. "Nothing," he said instead, turning his gaze towards the window again.
