It had been a decent day he supposed. The night before had been quite amusing as he had gone out with quite a few ‘friends’ to get pissed and cause some trouble. He knew he only had so much longer to act his age before he needed to suck it up and do his part for the cause. He was sure he really should just give up the childish bullshit now instead of waiting until later when he could potentially get in trouble for it. He hadn’t been spending much time at the apartment with how unwell his parents had been, wanting to give them space and peace which they never got in there day to day lives working at that fucking camp the prick Minister had put in place.

They weren’t home that afternoon as they were, as always, at the camp trying to earn enough money to scrape by. He always did what he could. He was sure it would shock people to see how he was at home when no one was looking. It wasn’t unlike him to keep the apartment in order, taking care of the wash, and meals for them all. Who he was at home with his parents was not the same person everyone else saw. They were his main motivators to join the cause and bring down the Ministry by any means necessary. Though he would never let anyone see that side of him.

No, he just needed a good shag and he would be okay. Thankfully the little slag had agreed to meet him at his apartment. He hoped she realized this was nothing more than a physical deal. Though for a moment he found himself wondering if she would be wearing the kind of things she wore at the manor and got slightly aggravated. If she had worn something ridiculous like that he would have a fit. It wasn’t a good idea to look like that in this area and she could be hurt in some way… not that he cared about her safety or anything. He just wanted to stay in her family’s good graces, nothing more. He laid back in an old raggedy recliner looking up at the ceiling with disinterest. He had reminded her to just walk in without knocking, once again to avoid any attention that could possibly bring to her.

@cecilia

This summer was seriously shaping up to being the longest one of Cecilia’s existence. She had known it was going to be awful since her summers commonly were—but adding Trey to the picture had been her reasoning for knowing it was going to be worse. Now, she had to grudgingly admit that she would rather be with him than at home anyhow. He was marginally more tolerable when he wasn’t around her family, as he was in fine fucking form when he was around them, clearly enjoying the fact that she pretty much had no choice but to do what he said and play the part of the obedient girlfriend or her family would absolutely flip shit and that would make her summer even worse. Her family when he wasn’t around was just as intolerable as always, and she’d already been subjected to being ‘beautified’ which was a form of torture that her mother loved to inflict on her. Then there was Lars and making her fly, another form of damn torture as far as she was concerned, and Klaus just… just bloody everything about him was torturous.

Getting out of the house was welcomed, even if it was only to go to Trey’s apartment. This continued relationship hadn’t made his presence any less aggravating but he was the lesser of the evils, obviously. Luckily for her, her mother hadn’t been home or there was no way she would have gotten out of the house in her current ‘mess’ of a state. Otherwise, she would be waltzing down Knockturn Alley in heels, pearls and a dress, more than likely, wearing an Oriana-approved outfit for her ‘date with Trey,’ as she clearly wouldn’t have been able to say that she was just going to his apartment in Knockturn Alley. That would have been a disastrous thing to admit. So getting out of the house and wearing normal clothes meant that this day was shaping up to be halfway decent, though she wasn’t a hard person to please at this point.

She’d actually never been in Knockturn Alley before, though she would assume that wouldn't actually surprise anyone. It wasn’t something that worried her all that much, though perhaps it should be, so she had just apparated to the Leaky Cauldron as she would normally before heading down in the direction she’d never ventured before. Cecilia supposed just acting casual and disinterested would suffice, so she didn’t bother looking around all that much as she headed down the alley. Of course, not looking around meant she had no idea if she was successfully staying under the radar but she would just pretend that it was working. Once she had spotted the entrance to the building and headed inside, Cecilia began to trek up to the third floor, bloody glad she wasn’t wearing heels for that walk. Finally, she pulled open the door to his apartment without knocking, which he had specified for some reason, and took a look around the entryway as she let the door shut behind her. “Hi,” she stated, once she had headed further into the apartment and noticed him in a recliner. She looked around the sparse apartment for a moment before dropping down onto the loveseat. Their fake relationship always left her momentarily confused about greeting him when there was literally nobody around but he was sure to let her know if she’d done something wrong so she decided to just see what he said.

Outfit

Trey knew that this was probably going to be the only time that week that he would get to just relax in a sense. Things were getting tenser and he had started working under the table doing various illegal exchanges to help pay the bills. He had suggested to his father to just let his mother stop going to the camp. As it stood at present it wasn’t mandatory or at least it wasn’t yet. It was the only means of income for those that the Ministry felt needed further punishment. His parents weren’t even in Voldemort’s inner circle and had been sentenced to life doing this shit work. He couldn’t handle seeing his parents come back to the apartment as they did so often, broken and bruised. It didn’t matter what others said about them. He knew that they hadn’t been proper parents when he was a child, but they tried their best and had always provided for him. It was his turn to give back and take care of them. Every day that they didn’t act had felt like an eternity since he arrived home.

He had spent a good bit of his summer so far in meetings and getting pissed. That was the only real way he knew how to handle anything those days. It was much easier to get sloshed and forget who he was and to what life he had been forced into then what was going on around him. The evening had already been planned out seeing as he had no intention on keeping the slag around very long. He had a few new potential clients he had to meet and schmooze later. If things went well he could probably make a nice bit of money from that endeavor alone. He really needed things to go well tonight.

Of course he hadn’t told the bint he was pretending to date any of this. She didn’t know much of anything about him other than him running with a pretty rough crowd full of ‘corrupt’ purebloods and unreformed Death Eaters. She knew nothing of his past or his current situation and he intended on it staying that way. Getting too close could not happen as then she would probably think he actually gave a fuck. He glanced up as she entered with an arched eyebrow at her greeting feeling slightly vexed that she hadn’t come over to greet him properly. Then again they weren’t in public so it really shouldn’t matter he supposed. It would be ridiculous for him to think otherwise or even want her to. ”Find the place okay?” He asked with a smirk as his eyes scrutinized her carefully. It was surprising that even in shorts he was distracted by her body, though he had already seen all it had to offer so that would make sense he supposed.

So far, she would have to say that this summer was going just about as poorly as she had expected it was going to. It had started off on an exceptionally bad note with her birthday dinner and she firmly believed that was a sign of times to come. Seeing Trey in his damn element schmoozing her family and taking advantage of the fact that their definition of her being obedient and proper was even stricter than his had proven to her that any encounter that she was going to have with him this summer was going to be awful. Cecilia still didn’t understand what exactly he thought he was gaining by continuing this relationship. Yes, apparently he knew her father but she couldn’t connect just what that could possibly have to do with Trey. She knew there was a possibility that it had something to do with her father wanted to get in contact with her, which she’d have to watch out for, but that still didn’t explain why Trey would be helping that to happen if that were the case. In her mind, there was absolutely no benefit for him since he also no longer got to piss off Roman as the original plan had been anyhow. There was something that she was clearly missing, and Cecilia found it important that she figured it out as quickly as possible. But since she had thought every encounter with Trey this summer was going to be torturous, Cecilia didn’t understand why she had been that relieved to come over, though she was just going to continue to tell herself that he was not as bad as her family. It was logical to choose the lesser of her problems—but her mother hadn’t even been home, neither had Klaus, and she had little clue if Lars had been either, so she had no idea how sound that reasoning actually was. Well, they could have gotten home at any damn minute, she told herself, which she supposed was true enough. Yes, she’d stick with that.

Although she had known that Trey knew her father, she hadn’t known that the Slytherin had lived in Knockturn Alley until he’d told her where to go. She supposed she could have assumed… if he knew Goyle, then he’d have to be in this area; but she had really thought that he just perhaps came here for whatever reason, running with that crowd if that was indeed what this was about. Being here was a different experience for her, but she could almost appreciate it since she knew her mother would absolutely kill her if she knew… and that was always something that made her feel a bit better if she knew it was something that she’d get away with. However, it did feel like her family knew all, always finding out shit that she’d done when she had no idea how they’d figured it out.

Cecilia had no idea why she was now second-guessing not kissing him because there was no one around to put on an act for, which meant it was hardly necessary. She supposed that she was just used to it at that point, that was all, and the fact that he hadn’t said anything about it led her to believe that he also bloody knew that it hadn’t been something she needed to do. “Yes, I asked directions from a helpful bloke down the street and he was very amenable to showing me the way.” Cecilia said, innocently, figuring that she might as well amuse herself slightly. Trey probably would think her stupid enough to ask directions in Knockturn damn Alley—though, actually, she supposed she might have if it really came down to it, but only because she could obviously take care of herself if anything happened.

Trey was actually quite anxious for the meeting he would have later that night. A lot was riding on closing this deal and it was all in his hands now. Who he knew could only get him so far. He needed to make a name for himself around Knockturn Alley. His family had been shamed and dehumanized by the Ministry. He knew he had to exercise patience when it came to the rebellion, but while he was waiting he may as well try to get in on some business. It seemed like one of the main sources of illicit items had disappeared. Whether the bloke was caught by the Ministry or had ended up on the wrong end of a deal, no one knew. Trey understood this all could get very dangerous, but it wasn’t like he had much to lose. He was trying to do what was right for his family. He was sure a good bit of people probably thought he was completely heartless and selfish. While that was a proper assessment most of the time this time wasn’t one of them when it came to his parents.

His eyes narrowed as the girl said she had asked for directions. This was not the place for a girl to just walk around asking for directions anywhere. What the hell was wrong with her?! She was female, first off, and an attractive one at that, and asking questions like that would make her an easy target as she would give away that she was not familiar to the area. He couldn’t stop himself as he stood up to approach where she was sitting with a fierce glare. ”Are you really telling me that you asked for directions in this sketchy fucking town?” He began in a low growl. ”Are you fucking stupid? Do you have the faintest idea what kind of shady pricks hang out around here?!" His voice got a little louder as he felt himself grow angrier. He ran a hand through his hair in aggravation as he waited for her answer.

Knockturn Alley was clearly not a spot that she’d ever had to venture into before—even to satisfy her curiosity. She knew that her mother would have a heart attack, more than likely, if she even knew that Cecilia was there. However, it wasn’t lost on Cecilia that her father was more than likely around this alley somewhere as well; she had passed the betting shop that he owed warily, but there weren’t any windows so she hadn’t had to worry about him somehow catching a glimpse of her if he’d been there. She’d actually been more nervous while passing the Lucky Strike for that reason alone than she had the entire walk down the alley to the apartment, though that could have been because portraying disinterest meant that she hadn’t wanted to look around much anyhow and so she had no idea if she needed to be worried about anyone that had been out on the street. Cecilia had gotten here with no trouble and that was something that she certainly constituted as a win. She glanced over in Trey’s direction as he got to his feet, and he looked relatively pissed off, which was an unexpected and amusing reaction. Apparently, she’d sounded pretty damn believable in actually having asked for directions. Did he actually think that anyone in Knockturn Alley would be amendable to helping out some random bint—without ulterior motives, at least, most of which probably wouldn’t have ended with her actually making it to the apartment? It didn’t seem likely to her that she’d be here if she’d asked for directions. She was a realist, after all, and not nearly as stupid as he seemed to think she was.

“That’s what I just said,” she said, vaguely, shooting him a confused look as if she was wondering why he’d be asking. Even the thought of her asking for directions was laughable, really. The apartment complex wasn’t exactly hiding, after all, so it would be ridiculous of her to not be able to find it herself. She supposed she should stop messing with him before he got too pissed, though she didn’t know why he was to begin with—though it probably had a lot to do with losing the in with her parents if she up and got murdered while visiting him in Knockturn Alley. Her father probably wouldn’t be all that happy with that either, though for all she knew he wouldn’t have actually given a damn anyhow; it was unclear to her, but she didn’t waste much time thinking about it. “I’m here, aren’t I? So clearly he wasn’t all that sketchy. He just said I owed him one,” Cecilia added, shrugging as she managed to keep a straight face. Now she was wondering just what anyone in Knockturn Alley would be talking about in 'owing them one' if this situation had actually occurred. It probably wouldn’t be all that great, she mused, as she glanced up at him when he began to speak again. A slow smile spread across her face at his obvious aggravation, deciding that she might as well stop while she was ahead. “Kidding,” she deadpanned, rolling her eyes. “Of course I didn’t ask for directions; I’m not an idiot, though I’m absolutely tickled by your concern.” Cecilia added, dryly.

Knockturn Alley just wasn’t safe for a girl like her. Sure she was feisty but that would only get her so far and if she had been daft enough to just speak to some bloke she didn’t know she wouldn’t make it out unscathed. He had been relieved she hadn’t worn of those ridiculous outfits Oriana dressed her up in. It wasn’t as if he didn’t appreciate the view they often gave him, but they were always loud obnoxious colors that would have immediately drawn attention to her. Not to mention he was sure she would have insanely expensive jewelry on that anyone within a mile away would have noticed. That was all he needed was for her to get mugged and assaulted. That would not go over well at all.

He could feel himself getting angrier with every word she said. It was ridiculous for her to think anything about this was okay. His eyebrows shot up as she spoke about some prick telling her she owed him one. Did she not have a fucking clue what that could mean?! ”And what exactly do you owe him?” He asked quietly all traces of humor gone from his face. His mind started running through all the blokes that typically hung out on a regular basis out in the alleys during the day. It was like going through a mental rolodex in his mind as he tried to figure it out. He stopped cold when she said she was kidding. Now he was enraged. This was nothing to joke around about. ”Get out…” He said with a growl pointing to the door. He did not handle those kind of jokes well and her little jab about him being concerned was just done at the wrong time. He had been concerned and that did nothing but add fuel to the fire. ”If you are going to play stupid fucking games you can leave.” He added curtly. It would probably be better anyway. He couldn’t chance some weird thing with caring about her well being.

To her, it had been incredibly amusing to act like she was stupid enough to do something like ask anyone in Knockturn Alley for directions. Really, if he didn’t think that she was such an idiot, he wouldn’t have fallen for it. It was hardly her fault that he underestimated her intelligence and probably thought she was as dumb as a rock. Asking for directions, she thought, slightly amused just by the thought. However, she hadn’t exactly been expecting this reaction from him. He seemed legitimately pissed that she had ‘done something’ so stupid. Seriously, she couldn’t have been that damn important to whatever plans he had. If she had asked for directions, she’d probably deserve whatever happened to her for being that naïve to begin with. “Nothing, I’m sure—that’s just an expression,” she stated, offhandedly. It was amusing acting as dumb as he seemed to think she was. No one expected or wanted her to have a brain anyhow apart for the whole helping her to be alive thing, and helping her to understand the crucial differences between teal and aquamarine, or other fashion and house related problems that she could possibly face in her lifetime.

She raised an eyebrow as he told her to leave, glancing slowly over at the door before moving her gaze back over to him. Not that she would ever admit it, but she didn’t bloody want to leave. Leaving meant going back home, and that was the last place she wanted to be. Besides, knowing her luck, leaving at this exact time would have her running into someone in her family that would have a lot to say about her current outfit and the argument alone in dealing with that was already giving her a headache. Cecilia really just hadn’t expected him to get that pissed over this, since he had already proven that her wellbeing meant very little to him. If she had asked for directions, she had made it here unscathed, so she was relatively unsure why he’d be so pissed off anyway. In fact, it was actually a bit off-putting to see him so angry since she hadn’t seen it before. Obviously, she’d seen him aggravated at her on many occasions, but this was the first occurrence of outright anger… and it was about something that he shouldn’t even be pissed about. Had that joke just not been nearly as funny as she thought it was? Maybe not. Cecilia supposed she didn’t live in this area so she wouldn’t take it nearly as seriously. Well, now she bloody felt bad and it was a damn joke—and it was Trey. She shouldn’t feel bad about anything involving him. Hell, if she up and got killed because she was visiting him, she should be glad because it meant that he’d lose that in he apparently wanted.

But now she bloody felt bad. She apologized to Trey a hell of a lot for whatever ridiculous missteps she took on a daily basis, but she’d never apologized and actually even kind of meant it. First time for bloody everything, she told herself. “No, I’m sorry. You’re right. It’s not a game,” she stated. She didn’t live down here and that meant she had no clue the type of shit that went down. Damn it, she hated feeling bad about shit. “I’ve never been down here before. I was playing it off.” Cecilia hadn’t anticipated actually saying that bit and immediately regretted it. It wasn’t like he ever cared for the explanation behind anything she said. “Sorry, you don’t care about excuses, never mind.” This conversation had taken an even more irritating turn, and now she was torn between just leaving anyhow or waiting until he straight up kicked her out. She supposed she didn’t have to go home; there was probably a bar around here somewhere that she could waste time at. Cecilia supposed she’d have to wait and see.

Trey was getting even more aggravated that he was concerned at all about her talking to anyone she didn’t know around that area. He honestly good not think of one single moment where he had actually been bothered by some bint doing whatever it was around Knockturn Alley. So his anger had surprised and confused him. He typically didn’t fly off the handle like that, sure he got irritated but he was usually never that pissed about something that should really be so trivial. It looked like she was just as confused as he stood and started chastising her. Part of him doubted she was stupid enough to actually ask for directions but with every word she said it just made things worse.

He could feel his face begin to flush. Was she really that bloody naïve?! ”How fucking dense are you? Do you not think for a second a pretty girl just wandering around isn’t going to be watched? Do you think what you owe him is money, hugs, or rainbows? Do you know what could possibly happen to you now?! Fucking hell!” He began to pace as if the action was going to somehow calm him down when all it felt like was that he was making it worse. ”You really are fucking clueless!” He snapped running a hand through his hair in aggravation. There was no way he could let her leave the apartment alone now. For all he knew whatever fucker she ‘owed’ was down there waiting.

It took a moment for him to register exactly what she was saying to him as he was so angry he could barely concentrate on anything else. He paused not looking at her as he continued to listen. It sounded like she was genuinely sorry that she had made such a joke. He knew all of the other times she had ‘apologized’ it was just to say it, but this was different. He pinched the bridge of his nose with a loud sigh. ”Cecilia… this is not a safe place to do anything like that. I know you don’t think anyone gives a shit about you… but I know your father would be pretty pissed I let anything happen to you.” He said before looking up at her. He wasn’t entirely sure he believed his concern was just because he was good friends with her father or something else. Either way it was ridiculous to think about right at that moment. ”Just don’t let it happen again.” He said grudgingly before taking a few steps to the fridge. ”Thirsty?” He asked his voice still full of irritation.

Cecilia really didn’t understand why he was so damn pissed, but his reaction had went from amusing to absolutely no longer amusing in the slightest. She knew that she had never seen him this angry before, which was actually kind of startling her. Watching him warily as he paced, she wondered if he wanted responses to these statements he was making, or if he was just talking at this point. However, she did note his comment because she had no idea if she’d been being watched as she was heading over here. In her mind, it was better to look disinterested and not look around all that much as opposed to trying to see if anyone was looking at her; so she supposed he had answered her silent question and probably had been noticed by someone. But she hadn’t been approached, she mused, wondering why that had been. Maybe her acting like it had been just another day had worked as well as she had thought it was going to. Cecilia didn’t exactly think that she blended in, but she wasn’t wearing a bright ass dress and heels so she had thought she might stand a chance of it. Well, now she could officially note that he was making her nervous about leaving, as she had no idea if she’d be able to not look around if she knew that someone was watching her because apparently someone would be. But she supposed she could worry about that later, as it wasn’t something she necessarily had to deal with at the current time.

At first, she was pretty sure that he really was just going to make her leave and she contemplated just straight up asking if there were any pubs around here because she certainly wasn’t going to go home—and she wasn’t going to bloody ask for directions now. But she’d go just about anywhere in Knockturn Alley if it meant not going home for the time being. She just needed a bloody break from the bullshit over there, and irritatingly enough Trey would have provided that distraction. However, she could come up with another one if it really came down to it, and it would involve going to a bar. Though knowing her luck, she would run into her father if she went to a bar, which definitely put a damper on that plan.

It seemed like he might have been calming down slightly, which meant that it was possible she wasn’t getting kicked out at all. This conversation was just bloody odd, really, and was a lot different than any kind of argument that they’d had in the past. First he had gotten damn pissed, and now he was sounding incredibly damn serious. Cecilia raised her eyebrows as he spoke about her thinking no one gave a shit about her, but didn’t say anything. It was almost surprising to her that he would have noticed that about her, or her family, or whatever, but she wasn’t going to think much of it at the current time. She couldn’t hold back the scoff as he brought up her father, rolling her eyes. He, out of damn well anyone, did not give a singular shit and it was aggravating that he could come and go as he pleased and she was supposed to just be grateful that he had showed up. Cecilia had forgiven the fact that he had left, knowing that he was going to do what he thought was best—no matter her opinion on it, but that didn’t mean that he just got to up and decide that he wanted her to suddenly be there. He’d been doing fine this long without her, and she’d been… doing bloody well enough without him around. “Let’s not go there,” she stated as he finally looked over at her. Talking about her father and him supposed caring if something happened to her wasn’t something she was equipped to deal with right now. Neither were her opinions on who did or didn’t give a shit about her. “All right, I won’t,” she replied, just glad that he was done bloody being pissy at her. She had no idea if she was agreeing to not letting inappropriately timed jokes happen again or not hypothetically asking for directions again. Cecilia certainly wasn’t going to bring up that she would have had to asked for directions if she hadn’t found the place and that she probably would have eventually have done so today if it had gotten to that point. “I’ll have whatever,” Cecilia answered, taking the opportunity to take a look around the living room.