A-A-Azalea (Joshua Murray)

Subject: A-A-Azalea (Joshua Murray) Wed Dec 30, 2020 12:02 pm

Tu kisi aur ki, ho na jaa naa.
Kuch bhi kar jaunga, mein diwanaa.

***

It was dark outside. Or at least she assumed it was. The windows were tinted enough to make any day gloomy. Funny how she had never noticed that before. How long had she been riding in this car with Josh and never noticed that - at the press of a button - the windows completely blocked out the outside world. Her own pale reflection stared back at her in the inky darkness as the roads quietly flew by.

It had been about fifteen minutes now in the car. So far, no one had spoken, creating the tension thick and strong and noxious in the small space between them.

"I meant to tell you-" she started only for him to look over, his eyes hidden in shadows, making it impossible for her to tell if he was angry.

"Of course, my own plans with mother were sudden too."

He didn't sound mad, or disappointed, or irritated. He sounded... like Josh. How had she not noticed that he was always deceptively emotionless? She had always assumed it was a sign of his geniality. Today however, the shivers running down her spine suggested otherwise.

On the surface, there was nothing wrong. On the surface, everything was fine.

So why was every inch of her being telling her to run?

***

"J-Josh," the witch murmured as he came over to kiss her hello, saying something about sponsors. As soon as her eye had caught his, Azalea had begun to play out the prepared speech. She would introduce Jake as her colleague, she would introduce Josh as her boyfriend, she would laughs and play it casual. What she hadn't counted on was Josh being... even more adept to surprises than her well rehearsed self.

The back of ehr throat dried up in panic as he kissed her, somehow without managing to smear her lipstick.

"Gentleman, I will be taking my Azalea now," he spoke coldly to the group of Aurors before doing just that, securing an arm around her waist that would stay there all evening, and start to hurt after some time.

***

"Will your mom get back okay?" the silence was growing deafening, and while the blonde may have been okay driving in the heavy smog of discomfit, Azalea had to say something.

"Mother."

"Sorry, will you mother-"

"A car and driver have been arranged for her."

And just like that, the conversation came to a stop. The witch found herself wringing her hands, trying to decide what to do next when she felt it.

His cold hand on hers.

The young woman recoiled almost instantly, only to realize he was simply reaching to unclasp her hands. "You'll hurt yourself," he clarified evenly, not looking at her, his dark eyes freedom he road ahead.

***

How they had spent the next three and a half hours, eating, dancing and occasionally making conversations with other sponsors, Azalea did not know. The rest of the ball had been a blur, only marked by the distinct smart of pain around her waist, the feeling of slight suffocation with the hint of more if she dared move away.

Azalea only came to when Josh informed her he would drive ehr back.

"Oh you don't have-"

He had ignored her protest, denoting there was no argument to be made. Miserably, the witch had walked out of the event on Josh's arm, her eyes desperately trying to find Jake.

To assure them both that everything would be okay.

***

"We're not going to Hogwarts, are we." It was not a question, rather a statement. She had taken too long to work it out. But of course they were going to Murray manor. The place Josh called home.

And the place that was starting to feel more and more foreboding.

"I thought you might appreciate sleeping in your own bed tonight, after all the excitement."

Once again, there was nothing in his tone to denote he blamed her for the events of the evening. Nothing at all that suggested he was irate or angry with her. He was simply... cold and aloof. The calmness she had admired for so long was starting to scare her.

The car grew darker still as they pulled into the extensive driveway. The car came to a halt almost without any motion, making the witch wonder why she felt so sick.

Josh left the car first, giving her the opportunity to draw a few deep breaths. Despite how calm he was, it was silly to think today could be brushed under the rug. She just had to tell him.

She should have told him months ago. But she could right that wrong now. She could apologize, beg for forgiveness, she could have an honest and sincere talk with him, and he would understand.

Her door slid open just as the brunette had made up her mind. Josh's hand reached for hers perhaps a note too insistently as he drew her from the vehicle.

"You're home."

The way he said it made her blood run cold.

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Subject: Re: A-A-Azalea (Joshua Murray) Wed Dec 30, 2020 12:39 pm

The evening had been a dull affair from the point he'd retrieved his Azalea from the clutches of the Auror. They'd listened to speeches, spoken to other sponsors, endured the boring event until finally it became acceptable for the son of the main sponsor to take his leave. Joshua had not informed his mother of the fact he was leaving, simply leading his Azalea out of the door and to the waiting car.

A staff member would arrange for the older Murray to be picked up from the event later.

It left him in the presence of his Azalea, and only his Azalea as the car sped across the country in it's usual manner. Nothing changed in the way Joshua Murray controlled the car, the man's persona would not give off anything as being out of place in that moment, despite the fact there was something undeniably wrong. His Azalea must have been tricked in to the attendance to the Ball with the Auror, or perhaps had gone under the proviso that they were friends. She hadn't put up a fuss when he'd saved her from his clutches, so it was the only logical explanation for it all. Yes, Joshua Murray had convinced himself of that much as they drove in near silence.

And also convinced himself that there was no more time for waiting.

The brief snippets of conversation that ensued were just that. Brief, and closed off before they could begin. His Azalea did not need to make excuses for the man she'd been with that evening, and he didn't want to hear them anyway. A misunderstanding, that was all it was.

Misunderstandings could be rectified.

The estate had come in to view, and Joshua had felt much more relaxed as they passed through the gates. The barely there feeling of the protection charms around the land never fazed the man normally, but as they passed through the shield he couldn't help but feel much more calm. His Azalea was safely back inside the protection he could offer her. Where she belonged.

As they pulled up at the front of the manor, Josh exited the car first, walking around the vehicle and opening the door for his Azalea, as he always did. A hand was extended to the witch without room for her to decline as she carefully lifted herself from the low seat.

"You're home." Joshua stated, the undertones of possession sounding through in the statement as he pushed the car door closed. No reply came from his Azalea as he lead her around the car and up the steps to the front door. The witch followed him without a word, and Joshua saw them through to the main withdrawing room.

Things had changed in the room, though.

Instead of looking quite muted in it's grandeur of muted shades of grey, the room boasted colourful vases of flowers. No, not just any flower. The vases contained each variation of azalea that could be listed in the world, the azalea would be shown in almost every colour the witch could possibly name. They would brighten the room in to a faux display of life that never, ever occurred within the Murray household on a normal day. How anyone could have arranged so many of the flowers in such a short time would have been a question in any normal scenario if the other person were given the chance, but Joshua Murray was not one to allow for such normality within his home.

Instead, the man brought the witch to the centre of the room, to the table that sat a multitude of boxes.

"I fear I may have waited too long to ask you, A-Azalea." Josh noted, his hand upon her waist once more as they both looked at the boxes before them. "But, I won't wait any longer." The words were meant to be fitting for the occasion, but the man did not know how to make these sentiments come in to fruition. It had never been in his nature, and the words ended up coming across in a manner that denoted an almost certainty of the answer he was going to receive, rather than a question that would offer more than one outcome.

"A-Azalea, will you become the next Lady Murray? My wife. Ethan's mother."

And if the question was not enough, the jewels of the Murray house that would be hers to choose from laid in all their glory would be.

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Subject: Re: A-A-Azalea (Joshua Murray) Wed Dec 30, 2020 1:15 pm

The witch shivered in his coat as he walked her across the lawns to the front doors where a servant stood with a lantern. The man merely greeted them politely before making himself scarce, not even offering to take her coat - Josh's coat - off her. The blonde beside her seemed to be focused on only one thing, walking her into the main area before stopping as the decorated hall came into view.

At first, Azalea had imagined the place was getting ready for some kind of party. The amount of colorful flowers on display hinted at such an event anyway. But then, as Josh lead her to the table at the center full of glittering rings, she began to understand what was happening.

"Jo-"

"I fear I may have waited too long to ask you, A-Azalea."

"No, you di-" she tried again, only to be silenced by his piercing stare as he looked... uncertain for the first time... ever. She could never have imagined - before tonight - a situation in which Joshua Murray was not sooth as silk. Yet here he was, trying to...

And she couldn't.

"But, I won't wait any longer."

No, she had to stop him. She could not let him live with the trauma of a rejected marriage proposal. No one deserved that. Least of all, him.

"A-Azalea, will you become the next Lady Murray? My wife. Ethan's mother."

The witch knew it was going to happen, yet even as did did, the question floored her. Because it reminded her that there was one person she had neglected to consider all night long.

Ethan.

Throughout the ball and during the journey here, Azalea had only thought of what had changed between Josh and herself. She had not given mind to the third life that hung in the balance. What would Ethan have thought if he could understand...

The blonde looked a her expectantly , prompting her into a response.

"Josh... Of course I'm honored to be Ethan's mother-" she started. But we need to talk was cut off as the wizard drew her close, pressing a kiss to her lips. She could feel the smile on him as he kissed her, softly at first and then more insistently, drawing her close once again to the edge of pain from earlier.

"Josh we hav-" she tried, disparaging her lips from his only for him to let out a noise of disapproval, finding her mouth again and crushing it to hers. Before she knew it, the witch was swept off her feet and placed on a sofa.

And her breath was taken as the red dress tore to shreds all around them.

She didn't remember passing out from the pain.

***

Sunlight streamed through the net curtains of the grand bedroom, the light gold bars drawing patchworks on her comforter. The witch woke with bleary vision and a distinct pain in her body, a pain that was swept aside when she realized what the light meant.

"Crap, Josh, I'm late for work," she mumbled , trying to get out of t he comfortable duvet. "Why didn't you wake me?"

As her eyes Oranjestad to the light, the witch found out two things. First, that she had been dressed sometime in the night. The witch currently wore a nightgown adorned with laces and frills, having had no memory of changing into such a garment. The lingerie was clearly Josh's choice.

And secondly, he was not in bed with her. In fact, he was fully dressed and siting on the chair opposite, watching her struggle to get out of bed.

An oddly satisfied smirk on his face.

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Subject: Re: A-A-Azalea (Joshua Murray) Wed Dec 30, 2020 1:40 pm

The smile on the man's lips had grown exponentially as she agreed to the proposal. He'd known her answer before she'd given it to him. She was his, she couldn't deny him. Any words past being honoured were not heard by Josh as he claimed her lips for his own. Hungrily kissing the witch until she relented from trying to speak further, and instead turned to the obvious celebrations that would follow an engagement.

The sofa of the withdrawing room had been put to good use that evening, Joshua Murray claiming each and every inch of the witch's body as his own until her frame had given in to the pleasures of their union.

No response had come from the witch as he'd promised with firm words that she would always be his.

***

Morning had come with a slightly different feeling surrounding the Murray Manor. The discarded dress of his Azalea's had been brought to the Head of the House with the question of what should be done with it. The reply was as usual -- 'exactly where everything else of the Lady Murray goes'. The staff had removed all evidence of the previous night's activities from the room, save the flowers and the jewels that still awaited his Azalea's choice.

Joshua had already bathed and changed in to his clothes for the day, returning to their bedroom to await his Azalea's rise from her slumber. Whilst he waited, though, he watched the perfectly smooth features of the witch as she slept with the usual care of remembering each and every single expression that adorned her features. How peaceful she looked when she slept, how excited she looked when she saw Ethan, and how happy she'd been when he'd asked her to marry him the previous night.

The corner of his lips curled slightly upwards at the memory of the previous night.

His Azalea.

"Crap, Josh, I'm late for work,"

The mumbled awakening made the smirk grow a little more on his lips in that moment. The question of why he hadn't awoken her for her menial job only proving to amuse him further than before. "There was no need to wake you," Josh replied as if she'd forgotten something. Confusion touched his Azalea's features in that moment, and so the man continued on to explain. "You're no longer teaching at Hogwarts, I sent your letter of resignation to Headmaster Kessler this morning. With immediate effect."

The witch looked like she was about to question the decision, so before she could, the man continued on. "As you're going to be the Lady Murray, there is going to be a lot of preparation required to ensure that we're ready for our big day. We can't have distractions, and what's a week in the grand scheme of things?" The last was said with a smile to soften the news just a little bit, but the smile did not reach the man's eyes.

"I thought it would be fitting, to have our wedding on the thirteenth of August. So, we really don't have time to waste. Which..." Josh paused, bringing his wrist around enough to see the watch upon his wrist -- as if he didn't already know precisely what the time was. "... reminds me, we have an appointment with the wedding planner in thirty minutes to discuss our initial plans for the big day, and to start work on the more intricate details that I'm sure you're excited to complete."

Rising from the seat, Josh buttoned his suit jacket and moved towards the door.

"Oh, and there's someone quite excited to see you." He finished, opening the door so that their son could enter. His tiny feet moved quickly to the side of the bed, the smile on his lips much more genuine than his father's as he greeted her.

"Thirty minutes, don't be late." Josh stated, before striding away from their bedroom.

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Subject: Re: A-A-Azalea (Joshua Murray) Wed Dec 30, 2020 2:02 pm

"There was no need to wake you,"

The witch looked up his way in confusion, not quite sure what he meant. A brief check of her mental faculties assured her it was a weekday, she was expected at school. And then to pick up Ivan and Adrienne.

"You're no longer teaching at Hogwarts, I sent your letter of resignation to Headmaster Kessler this morning. With immediate effect."

"You did... what?" The color drained from her face as understanding dawned. When had she agreed to quit her job, even if he was under the illusion they were getting married. But he was quite serious, she learned as Josh continued, going on about dates and arrangements and thing the witch couldn't possibly wrap her head around this early in the morning.

"But all my stuff at Hogwarts," she tried to interrupt. Josh waved her concerns aside, assuring her everything would be picked from the school and delivered here today.

"And my students... I can't let them."

'Classes are over, A-Azalea, you're not leaving anyone in the lurch.," he reminded her, a hint of impatience in his tone as he readied to leave. It was clear he did not wish to talk of this anymore.

He had decided she would leave her job and that was what he expected her to do.

"Thirty minutes, don't be late."

the man left, leaving Ethan to climb into her bed in his wake. The child at least was overjoyed to see her, crawling towards her and settling against her happily as she greeted him with a kiss and a cuddle.

"Hey munchkin," she spoke to the child softly as he snuggled into her. "Did you miss me?'

Ethan looked up at her with big brown eyes, almost an exact replica of her own. Cocking his golden head to one side, he contemplated her question before repeating it himself. "Did you miss me?'

"Always," Azalea replied, smiling despite the situation. It was impossible not to around the little boy who was hers in every way but one.

"Then don't leave again," he suggested seriously. "Father says you stay here now."

Despite the warmth of sunlight on the best, Azalea felt the same chill she had last night, when Josh had pronounced she was home.

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