Fallen Angels

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"The headmaster isn't a bad man, I don't really think any of the professors here are bad people," Michael said. There were oddballs and some awkward ones, but no one he was wary around anymore. "Do you remember Carolynn? The Indian girl? Chase is married to her." If Skylar remembered Eros, Mano, and Emilian, it was almost impossible he wouldn't remember Carolynn.

[Skylar Constantine]

Skylar actually laughed at that, and long enough to get a giggle out of the toddler trotting at his side, even if she had no clue what he was laughing about. "Carolynn's married to a working man," he said, still chuckling. "She was always into younger guys, wasn't she?" He'd never managed to get her into bed. She seemed to like doing the hunting herself.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"She was. She was actually Emilian's first. I'm pretty sure Chase doesn't know that, which is probably a good thing considering the duels they got into when they were students," Michael said. "They don't really like one another, Emilian has a bad hand from one of the duels." He thought for a moment that maybe he should go see Emilian, but thought that he was already pushing his luck talking to one old acquaintance and he didn't need to add Emilian to the mix.

[Skylar Constantine]

Skylar's brows arched at that. So the Deputy Headmaster was young enough to have gone to school with Emilian. He was young, and he sounded a lot more interesting than his letter had made him seen. Hell, maybe he had a shot with Carolynn now that she was all locked up in a school. "I've got to meet this guy," he said. It seemed like a lot had happened in the few years that he'd been out of the loop.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"Oh, I'm sure you will," Michael said. "The school is actually hosting a fair soon, it would be a good time for you to get out and meet the professors and such." The things the school hosted tended to be fun and his whole family was going to be there, if not involved.

[Skylar Constantine]

Skylar was suddenly reminded how out of his depth he was here. He was lucky as sin and didn't deserve a bit of it, but until it was taken away, he'd better damn enjoy himself. "Is it a kid thing?" he asked. There would have to be students, he couldn't imagine a fair just for professors, but not every kid thing was a toddler thing.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"There aren't a lot of young kids, but I'm sure there will be plenty of things for the twins or Ember to do," Michael said. "There is going to be a jousting tournament and some other things, people dressed up everywhere." The twins were going to be there and dressed up, even Elouai and Hero had special collars for the festivities.

[Skylar Constantine]

Skylar's brows arched higher at that. For a moment he was struck dumb, then he caught up Ember, who ignored him entirely and reached for the dog. "You've never been to a wizarding fair," he told her, and she made little grunts as she struggled. He set her back down, smiling now, and let go of her hand. She'd keep up. She was too into the dog not to. He shrugged the bag onto his shoulder now, comfortable enough to let his cloak swing back and the hood fall. "Do they do stuff like that a lot?" he asked Michael.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

"About once a year there's a big event," Michael said. "The year the twins were born we went to a resort, we've had a Masquerade ball once that was a lot of fun." He couldn't help but smile at the memory of that, back before he and Dare had ever been official. It was a good memory even if it had led to an uncomfortable confrontation afterward.

[Skylar Constantine]

"The resort, that was that beach thing you told me about," Skylar guessed. "Damn, the school did that? Talk about perks. Really soothes the burn of working." He figured Michael worked because of the disowning, and it seemed like he'd found a good place if they got stuff like that. Of course, Skylar hadn't had anything like that in years now. Maybe he could do this. Maybe it wasn't just holding on until he got kicked out. That was a thought.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael smiled and shrugged. "I like my job, actually," he said. "I ran the pet shop in Diagon Alley for a while, but I love this so much more. I can't really imagine doing anything else." Sure, there were negatives about it, but there would be negatives for any job he took. The positives, he thought, vastly outweighed any cons.

[Skylar Constantine]

"You're blowing my mind, Michael," Skylar said. The stuff about the rest of that group, Carolynn being married to a working man and Emilian being a lonely cripple would have been enough, but Michael was just piling on the surprises. Gay, married, kids, enjoyed working, couldn't imagine anything else.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael smiled again and looked contemplatively up at the castle. "I never liked my old life, it all felt fake and my father pushed the Death Eater thing," he said after a minute or two of silence, the smile disappearing. "This is a better life. Someone else can go to balls and dress up and build connections."

[Skylar Constantine]

"You seemed into it," Skylar said, leaving it at that. They'd gone out enough times and he'd heard enough besides that he couldn't imagine it was all faked. You had to mean the kinds of spells they'd shown off to each other and Michael was the Crown Prince of Crucio. He'd been more of an Imperio man himself, though he'd been good enough at the other to ruin his life.

[Michael Blackwood-Hardt]

Michael fell silent and looked ahead. He'd played the hand he was dealt. He hadn't wanted it and he hadn't stayed in it for long once he had another option. It was something he was far from proud of. "You're right," he said finally. "It was different, though." If he had liked it, he hadn't liked it in the way he liked teaching or the way he liked art.