Serena balanced the two drinks carefully as she navigated the jostling and merry crowd. The bar was packed full of bodies and getting anywhere was a bit of a struggle. A few times, she was unable to get past a clump of people until she jabbed them with her elbow. It seemed as though all of London had come out to participate in the pub crawl. Finally reaching Lexington’s side, she rested her chin on the smaller girl’s shoulder and reached around her body, holding out the glass in offering. “This is sheer madness.”
It had taken her an hour to set up the fort of pillows and blankets in the apartment living room. It had taken her another hour to slog through an attempt to make an edible dinner before she’d eventually given up and settled on take-out. While her girlfriend might deserve a home-cooked dinner, there was no way Serena was going to be able to deliver. She just hoped the romantic aspect of the fort was able to make up for the Chinese food.
Sitting on the floor in front of the fort, she kept her eyes trained on the door. She was impatient for Lexington to get back to the apartment - more than usual. Their date nights were always special and Serena was excited to see Lexi’s reaction to it.
Finding Lexington had always been easy for Serena. Even in a place as big as the Ministry, she knew exactly where to look. It was an universal fact that if a building had a training room, Lexington would spend as much time as possible within it. Standing in the doorway, she took the opportunity to simply admire her girlfriend. Watching Lexington work out had always been sexy to Serena. Before the breakup, she would have already been dragging Lexington off to a private corridor for some action. But things had changed in the aftermath of the infidelity. Despite the rekindling of their relationship, there had been nothing but a bit of light kissing between the two of them. Serena still wanted Lexi -it was impossible not to - but something had kept her from letting their alone time progress further. And she hated it; hated the part of her that wasn’t ready to fully trust Lexington again.
She took a step into the training room, hesitating as an idea came to mind. It was foolish and would likely lead to trouble. But Serena knew she needed to overcome the aversion to getting physical with her girlfriend. Even if she had to force it. Setting down the food, she walked up behind her girlfriend as quietly as possible. Reaching out, she grabbed Lexington’s hands and brought them behind her back as if she was arresting her, making sure to be gentle. “I’d say you’d have the right to remain silent, but I would miss your voice too much.”
It had been hypocritical of her, Serena knew. Escaping through an upper window when she’d been telling people to stay put in the building they’d taken shelter in. But Serena hadn’t been able to sit there and hide any longer. Not when she didn’t know who she cared about could be stuck in Knockturn Alley. Images of Lexington or Molly being caught in the cross-hairs of an unknown threat had been haunting her every thought since she’d heard news of the attack. Leaving them out in danger wasn’t an option.
The fall hadn’t felt great and she was sure she’d twisted her ankle at the very least. But she still limped her way towards Knockturn, wand drawn and ready for any sign of trouble.
“Here, mon chou, let me do that for you.” Serena said, coming up behind Lexington and grabbing the box off the floor before Lexington could go for it. It wasn’t as heavy as she expected it to be, but Rena still didn’t mind helping her girlfriend out. She’d been growing steadily more worried about Lexington as time had passed and had been trying her best to be there for the other girl as much as possible.
She placed the box down on the table and turned around to face her girlfriend, leaning back against the edge. “What do you want for dinner? I can go pick something up for you? Molly won’t be home from work for a while but I can always grab her something too while I’m out.”
Talia made a face at the couple seated next to her. She had been noticing a startling lack of common sense and decency in most people recently, something that had been grating at her nerves. But this had taken the cake. Because while Talia might have understood that they were in love, it still didn’t pardon the verbal foreplay they were engaging in while being uncomfortably close to other patrons. And they didn’t seem to be taking any care in being quiet about it either.
She had chosen an unfortunate time to take a sip of her tea however, as a member of the party to her left said what had to be the most disturbing line of dirty talk that she had ever heard. Talia choked, the tea burning the inside of her nose as it went the wrong way out. Coughing and sputtering, she smacked her chest, trying to clear her airways. “For Merlin’s sake! Take it somewhere else. People are trying to have a nice lunch, you prats.”
When: June 2023
Where: Phoenix Circle, London
Who: Lexington Brighton and Serena LaCroix (Mentions of Rion Hannifan, Levi Yaxley, and Molly Weasley)
Trigger Warnings: Angst.
The entire night had been a blur. Drinking at the bar, spotting Rion, drinking more… She’d stopped paying attention to good sense or reality after several shots. She cared even less about what was happening as they left The Leaky Cauldron. She should have known then to just turn around and go home. Anger was still fueling her; the first sign that she was on the wrong path.
Walking up the steps with her jacket over her arm, she felt disgusting. She was sure she smelled of alcohol, could feel it seeping out of her pores, and her hair was a tousled mess. She stopped outside their front door, keys in her hand, trying to think of something to say. The words weren’t coming and she knew better than to think she could come up with some speech to talk her way out of this way. She was fucked. Completely and utterly fucked.
Pushing the door open, she pocketed her keys again and stepped inside, looking around for any sign that Serena was already up. Not that she deserved it, but it would have made Lexi feel better if she wasn’t waking her up to deliver bad news.
Serena wasn’t sure if it had been the sound of the keys in the lock or Brutus’ excited bark that had woken her up first. Both had seemed to happen almost simultaneously in her groggy mind. But as soon as the door was open and her girlfriend entered the apartment, Serena sprang to her feet. “Where the hell have you been?” She snapped, trying to keep her voice down. The last thing she wanted was to wake Levi or Molly. “You’ve been gone all night. Some sort of warning would have been nice, at least so that I wouldn’t have stayed up all night waiting for you to come back.” The armchair hadn’t been the most comfortable piece of furniture to doze off on and it had left a crick in her neck - one she was sure would bug her for the rest of the day.
She knew that most of her irritation came from worry. But there was also still a small part of her that was frustrated by all the time she’d spent trying to make an apology dinner for her girlfriend. Cooking had never been Rena’s best skill and trying to make the perfect meal had been a nightmare. Not to mention the dozens of candles she’d had to assemble, light, and then eventually unlight away had been a giant waste of effort as well. She’d been too tired and irritated to put them back once she’d realized Lexington had no intention of coming back to the apartment and thus they remained where she’d arranged them.
Lexington flinched the moment she heard Serena’s voice. Looking around, her heart sank. The blanket covering the armchair and the candles scattered around the living room made the pit of despair in her stomach sink even further down. She dropped her bag and her jacket onto the floor beside the door, averting her eyes to her boots as she let Serena lay into her. She was in no position to argue. She just waited until it was over, though she knew it was nothing compared to what was coming for her once she opened her mouth again.
“I’m sorry,” she started quietly, running her hands through her hair. She looked over at Levi’s sleeping form and then realized they couldn’t do this here. “Can we go in our room to talk? I don’t want to wake anyone up,” she requested, gesturing to the door and then heading that direction without waiting for an answer. Once inside, she stood beside their bed, unable to look at it. Pictures of them together were on the bedside tables and lined the top of the dresser and each one sent a shot of pain through her heart. What had she done?
Rena huffed and followed after Lexington, pausing to glance back at Levi before she shut the door behind her. Pulling out her wand, she cast a muting charm on the door. “There. Now we won’t wake anyone up. So, where were you? Getting drunk? Because you look completely wrecked right now.” It was a little unfair of her to be so rude but she couldn’t help it. It absolutely infuriated her that Lexington got so upset over her being overprotective and then proceeded to do something she knew would drive Rena crazy with worry. She couldn’t help but feel as though she was being set up just to get yelled at. “And don’t bother trying to lie to me. I can smell the booze on you.” After spending the better part of two years always drunk, Serena could always tell when someone had gone on a bender.
Keeping her eyes down, she nodded slowly at Serena’s observations. “I got drunk, yes.” There was so much more to it, so much she needed to say, but the words clogged her throat and made it hard to breathe for a moment. “I may do a lot of things, but I don’t lie to you. I never lie to you.” She looked up at Serena then, ignoring the tears brimming her eyes. She didn’t deserve them and she didn’t want to cry when she was the one who was about to ruin everything they had. “I went to the leaky cauldron to drink and I… I ran into a friend…” She stopped, clearing her throat. “I went home with him.” She stopped again, finding it hard to string together more than a sentence at a time.
The tears in Lexington’s eyes sent Serena’s heart jerking in her chest and she stepped forward, automatically reaching out towards the other girl. “I’m still a little angry with you for staying gone all night without telling me, but at least you didn’t pass out in the street or anything.” She sighed and tugged the other girl into an embrace, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “You don’t need to cry, mon chou. Everything’s going to be alright.” She rested her chin against the top of Lexington’s head and nuzzled her. “I’m sorry for being so annoying lately. I’ll try to be better about it from now on.”
Lexington did nothing to stop Serena from touching her even though she felt sick at the embrace. The kiss made the tears flow freely and she reveled in the moment, letting herself feel every inch of Serena that pressed against her. Her heart felt torn and she knew that she couldn’t keep this up. The option was there; lie and pretend nothing had gone wrong, let Serena believe she’d only slept at a friend’s house. It wasn’t as if Rion would ever talk. Still, she could feel the guilt eating away at her already. Pulling back, she resigned herself to the fact that it might be the last time she ever felt that close to Serena again. “You… you don’t get it. I… I didn’t just stay at his house.” She forced herself to stop crying, though she could barely see through the blur of tears threatening to break free. “I slept with him, Rena…”
Confusion welled up as Lexi pulled away from her. She stood in silence as Lexington explained what she meant. The words felt like a punch to the gut and she couldn’t stop the sharp inhale. It had to be some kind of joke; Lexington couldn’t have cheated. She wouldn’t. But the tears told a different story. And suddenly, she felt sick. Because while she had been up all night, preparing and worrying, Lexington had been having sex with someone else. Someone she apparently knew. The blood roared in her ears and she could barely hear her own voice as she asked the question bouncing around in her head. The ones question she knew she’d never want the answer to but had to ask anyways. “Who was it? This friend. Who?” She had to know who had been worth the destruction of their relationship. And when she did, Serena would make sure they regretted the action. Because the anger that was burning her up from the inside demanded to be released in some way, to be channeled into making someone else feel as awful as she did in that moment. It had always been her choice of self-defense. But even now, as betrayed as felt, even now she couldn’t find it inside herself to raise even a finger to Lexington. Serena hated it.
Once it was clear that Serena knew the truth, finally understood what she’d done, Lexington knew there was no going back. This was her choice and she would deal with the repercussions, whatever they may be. Still, it took her by surprise when Serena asked her who. For some reason, she hadn’t expected her to want to know. She’d almost hoped, in fact. She knew how Serena felt about Rion and she was officially afraid of what would happen. Of course, there was no going back. She’d promised no lies. “I… It was… Rion.” Her voice was shaky but that didn’t stop her. The name rang clear through the room, almost too loud in the silence. She wanted to drown in her own tears in that moment, not wanting to live another second of this moment.
Rion Hannifan. Of course it was. Of all the people in Great Britain that Lexington could have slept with, of course it was the one person Serena could stand the least. Her grip on her wand tightened. When she got a hold of the slimy little git, she would rip him into pieces. There wouldn’t be anything left of him for them to bury by the time she was done. Whirling around, she stormed towards the door, intent on making good on her own internal promises. As her hand closed around the knob, however, something tugged at the back of her mind. Reaching up, she unclasped the necklace that hung from her neck and stared at it as it lay in her palm. She hadn’t taken it off for even a moment since Lexington had given to her. It was blood stained and had some slight damage from the attacks it had gone through. The necklace had always brought her strength and a sense of safety; a small reminder that she’d always have her best friend by her side. And in a way, she still did. Lexington had been her best friend before the relationship. They could remain friends afterwards as well. But there was no way she could continue to give her heart to the girl behind her. Not when it was clear Lexington wouldn’t protect it anymore. Turning around, she walked back over and held it out for the other girl to take.
Watching Serena turn her back on her made Lexi feel a swell of sickness. She couldn’t blame her, couldn’t make herself stop the other girl from leaving. She knew it wasn’t her place anymore. Whatever Serena needed to do now, Lexington would let her do. Then Serena turned back to her and it took Lexi a moment to realize what was happening; the necklace hung between them, a stark visualization of just what was happening between them in that moment. “Serena… No…” She felt herself start to tear up all over again, hating the way her emotions seemed to own her whenever Serena was the subject on her mind. “Serena, don’t… I don’t want it back…” She couldn’t. She couldn’t move her arms, couldn’t open her hand to accept it. She felt frozen in that spot, willing her world to stand still until she could figure out how to proceed.
“I can’t keep it. It’ll just make me think of you and I… I won’t be able to handle that.” Her voice shook as she spoke and she clenched her jaw, trying to force it to stop. She hated how weak she sounded. Moving quickly, she grabbed Lexington’s hand and forced it open, shoving the locket inside of it. “We were friends before and that doesn’t have to change. But that’s all we can be now, nothing more. That locket reminds me of too many other things. So either you keep it or you can get rid of it.”
There it was. The irrefutable proof that she’d ruined everything. “Nothing more.” Just like that, it was over. She knew she had no one else but herself to blame and she felt sick for hating Rion in that moment. The locket was in her hand and Serena’s touch burned. She let her hand fall back to her side as soon as Serena let her go, unable to move or think for a moment. “I’m sorry,” she stuttered weakly, watching Serena closely. “I’m so sorry…”
“Sorry isn’t enough this time…” Serena said softly and turned back towards the door. Any other time and any other mistake, she would have been able to forgive Lexi. She would have brushed it off and they would have gone on as they had. But not after the fight they’d had. Not when it seemed as though Lexington had slept with Rion just to get her back for being overprotective. That wasn’t a betrayal she was willing to forgive that easily. Opening the door to their room - their former room, she corrected herself- Serena didn’t even stop to look behind her as she left. Tears had formed in her eyes and she didn’t want the other girl to see them. Because if Lexington tried to console her, it would only break her down further and she knew the risk of her forgiving Lexington just to keep the other from getting upset was too high.
Her heart was splintering into pieces and she felt like she was going to come unraveled. She knew as soon as the door opened, there was no going back. Serena was gone, walking out of their door, and she wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do now. Her knees buckled and she barely caught the edge of the bed before she collapsed, falling to her knees. The locket was clutched so tightly in her hand that she could feel the metal biting into her skin but she couldn’t let go. It was all she had left. As the sobs wracked their way up her throat, she was sure she was never going to be the same again. If she’d lost Rena forever, she’d lost everything.
Serena nudged open the door to their new apartment with her foot, her arms full with a box of things whose owner she wasn’t quite sure of, though the trinkets she could see within it had her leaning towards Molly. She carefully navigated around the various piles that littered the floor and set the box down outside of her friend’s new room. The older girl would either take it in if it belonged to her or leave it out if not. Moving three people into one apartment had proved to be more chaotic than she had anticipated, despite the fact that they had all lived together in the same dormitory for seven years. The former Gryffindor hadn’t realized just how much stuff they had all owned.
Walking back through the apartment, her foot struck the corner of one of the furniture pieces, sending pain radiating up her leg. “Merde!” She cursed, taking a step back and reaching down to rub at the side of her foot.
