Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea)

Subject: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Fri Oct 16, 2020 9:48 am

"I need a place to dance, I need a place to dance, I need a place to dance," the brunette whispered under her breath, taking long strides across the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. Rumors of the Room of Requirements had been plenty but Azalea hand's needed to verify them until now. Not least because Hogwarts had a very well equipped dance studio on the second floor. And even if the witch didn't want to run into anyone there, she had plenty of private spaces afforded to her new as Head of House, the most readily available of which were her own considerable accommodations now.

So why was she here? Hoping Barnabas would have an answer, the witch locked eyes with the painting. His errand was as much a fool's one as her own though, too busy teaching trolls ballet to realize the witch in front of him was having a miniature meltdown.

"I need a place to dance," the Potion Mistress repeated a little more tersely, adding a "please" when one of the trolls looked at her with an unmistakable air of having taken offense. It had ben a trying day at best and she didn't need to get into an argument with a stitched on troll.

According to the hearsay, she was doing everything right. She had walked across the tapestry thrice, she had pictured what she wanted, so why wasn't the magic complying? What more did the bloody mechanism require of her.

Some honest, to start with, her conscience offered most inconveniently.

Joshua had dropped her off reluctantly on Sunday evening, torn between being back at the castle and leaving Ethan on his own. The child was definitely not in any immediate danger but his unexpected cold had made Azalea realize soemthing she didn't want to.

She couldn't leave him.

How could she abandon a child just like whoever had brought her into this world had abandoned her? Ethan was not ehr, he had a world of options available. Perhaps he wouldn't even remember her as grew older. But her life was very much defined by the role she played to him. He was the closest she had ever felt to being a mom to a child, and Azalea could not make herself give that up.

Even if it meant lying to Josh.

"I need a place to think."

The door appeared as though it had always been there, just in her periphery. If it wasn't for the fact that she knew how the magic worked, Azalea would have sworn she had just kept missing the door. The silver handle looked quite modern, the staple of any state of the art dance studio. Reaching out, the witch pulled it towards her, opening the door outward with ease. Stepping inside, the witch found exactly what she had been trying to get.

A wide, empty room with mirrors for walls and a steel bar running along all sides.

A dance studio.

Locking the door behind her, she walked towards the center point, a habit old as time. Somewhere along ago, someone had taught her this was the best position to observe oneself in, and Azalea had taken the lesson to heart. Now, the woman stared at her dark jeans and turtleneck clad frame carefully. The heels she had exchanged for running shoes were the only things that gleamed white on her. Pulling her hair into a high ponytail, the witch cut the right image. A dancer feting ready for a practice sessions.

Or a witch just stalling, trying to make absolutely sure she was alone.

She waited five minutes, then ten, then fifteen until her own brown eyes started staring at her accusingly. She had wanted to do this. She had set aside time after her work day for this. She was definitely going to do this.

Throwing one last look at the door, Azalea finally brought her hands to the hem of her turtleneck, slowly rolling it up to reveal her narrow, unmarked stomach. The witch was surprised to note that she had lost some weight. Between the stress of what could now only be classified as having an affair and a sick child, the witch hadn't found herself eating anything that wasn't directly put on a plate for her. It was only a few pounds but she could see the beginning of a rib poking through.

Rolling the soft material further upwards, the witch studied her breasts only covered by small dark stickers a the peaks. The small mounds were the finest sign of bruising she spotted. Almost as if the flesh had been kneaded a little too hard, a little too fast and a little too roughly.

The urge to stop, to push the fabric back down and trick herself into thinking this was the worst of it, was strong. But she hand't come this far to quit now. With a final, shaky breath, Azalea pulled the top off completely, tossing the material to the floor. There was no way to hide from herself now as Azaleas from all angles stared back at, Azaleas with various mark and bites and bruises decorating the better part of their upper body.

It took some doing to get her breathing back under control. For as much as she wanted to believe it hadn't happened, here was irrefutable proof that it had. Somewhere, somehow on Saturday night, she had crawled into Joshua's bed and... this was the result. The brunette didn't remember it but she didn't have to. There was no reason to doubt his smug "I guess you missed me" the morning after as she'd groggily woken up, naked and with a feeling that of being watched for hours now.

What had persuaded her to leave Ethan's bedside, the witch wouldn't say. But she had and for what? Azalea withdrew her gaze shamefully form the mirror, unable to reconcile all the hickeys on her throat with how she actually felt. The marks weren't new. They were in fact Josh's signature ones. Nothing unusual had happened that night.

Which was why it was so much worse now. Instead of confessing to the blond what she had done, Azalea had instead ended up sleeping with him. For a reason she couldn't even remember. Had it been her body acting subconsciously on the wish to stay near Ethan? Figuring that if she remained normal to Josh, she wouldn't be justified in calling their relationship off, ergo remaining with the little boy she would sacrifice the world for. Whatever her logic might have been, it as too late now.

She had to talk to Jake, she had to finish it off.

Even if it killed her.

The witch sank to the floor, pulling her turtleneck towards her and holding it close to her body as she shook back and forth with tearless sobs. This was why she needed somewhere she could be alone.

So she could cry her heart out over what she had done. And what she still had to do.

The witch would have stayed there longer, crying herself into a stupor if it hadn't been for her phone ringing insistently. Retrieving the small silver device from her pocket, Azalea glanced at the screen and all thoughts of cutting off the call vanished when she saw the name of the school calling.

Ten minutes later, the witch was fully dressed and rushing towards ere car, unaware of the world around her because there were two children who needed her now.

And she would not let them down.

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Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Rsz_gr10

Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Rsz_az10

Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Rsz_li10

Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Sat Oct 17, 2020 9:01 am

Everything had seemed to go slowly since leaving the school on Friday, whether it truly had been as slow as it felt, Jake couldn't have said. Friday night had seen him home with his children and Clara, creating a mess in the kitchen as they made dinner together. The four had created a feast of pizzas with various (and sometimes questionable) toppings on them, and watched them cooking in the oven together from the floor.

Clara's mood seemed to be brighter than usual, and Jake felt the usual uneasiness he had long associated with the older witch starting to creep back in to his system. Did she know? If she did, did she judge him for it? Or worse... Azalea? The man's questions would go unanswered though, for no sooner had they finished dinner had Clara announced she was going back to Furz Croft for a couple of days. After lots of cuddles from Adrienne, and an almost reluctant hug from Ivan, the Seer had left the house, leaving Jake with the task of getting both children in to bed, and then tidying the mess in the kitchen, Clara Kent would always had a knack for timing.

But Jake had managed exactly that, the children going to bed easily after a tiring week at school, and a fun filled evening with their dad.

The kitchen had been a little bit of a slower process, even with his wand. Each time his phone pinged with the arrival of a new message, the man found himself scrambling to read it, only to find the person he wanted the message to come from never showing up on his phone. The night continued in much the same way, until finally Jake relented on his own tiredness. A quick shower, and the man had crawled in to bed. Another check of his phone, and no new messages, he'd turned it on to silent before rolling over.

Saturday and Sunday were just the same. The children decided on what they wanted to do for the day, varying from movies, to swimming, and the insistence Jake play all the games with them both. It was Sunday afternoon before he could convince them both to do their homework, Ivan putting up less of a fuss than Adrienne, until Jake promised he would sit with his daughter and help her with the spelling test she had on Wednesday morning.

It went slow, though.

Perhaps slower because each buzz from his phone had him checking the time. And the day went so much slower when you watched the clock.

Sunday evening had found him laid in bed thinking about Thursday past. Of what Azalea and he had done, despite the fact she was in a committed relationship. Surely something so good... couldn't be a bad thing? Jake didn't think it could be, and yet he knew better than to think it wasn't. Did the lack of message from Azalea mean she was thinking it all through, or that they were now back in a place where they couldn't talk? Did she regret it? Was she breaking up with Josh this weekend? Did he want her to forego her relationship for him?

The questions had been too many, and the answers were much too difficult to decide on.

He didn't know what Azalea wanted, so he couldn't answer them.

He would have to wait, like he said he would.

Instead, Jake had turned his mind back to the part that wasn't so confusing. The part where thinking hadn't been necessary, and he'd just enjoyed the moment. That part he didn't have to question, that part he could enjoy again if he so wished. Nothing could stop him from doing that.

Sleep had come quite easily after reliving the moment from Thursday.

Only to be disturbed at six o'clock the next morning when Adrienne had jumped on top of his sleeping form, knees and elbows digging in to his frame heavily before she settled under the covers beside him.

"Daddy, are you awake?"

"I am now, princess." Jake replied softly, rubbing his stomach where one of the child's limbs had struck.

"Good, because I'm awake too! Ivan's snoring." Adrienne commented, snuggling in to him closely. The man would enjoy the cuddles with his daughter for half an hour, listening to her soft voice telling him about all the plans she had for school today that came rapidly from her mouth. A smile had set upon the man's lips as he pressed a kiss atop her head, then insisted they get ready for school, and that they needed to go and get Ivan up.

By eight o'clock, both of the children had showered, dressed, had breakfast and were ready with their school bags. Jake was just closing the zipper of Ivan's bag as the alarm went off on his phone to denote they had to leave for school now to be on time. Bundling them both in the car, Jake had dropped both of them at school, before turning back around.

By nine, the man was at the Ministry for his day at work. Hopefully, nothing too crazy would come from today's assignments.

***

Jake's phone went off in the break room just before one o'clock. The morning's raid in York had gone well, an easy job that allowed the team to breach a property thought to be illegally smuggling dark artefacts through to America. It had been empty of people when they'd arrived, a few boxes of material sat in the living area waiting to be smuggled from the country. Securing the property had been easy, and though the confiscated materials weren't as big a haul as expected, it was still relatively prosperous. Nobody had shown up whilst they worked, which had been unfortunate, but a couple of Aurors had been left a short way from the building to see if anyone returned.

The number calling made Jake's blood run cold as he hammered the accept button, and brought the device to his ear.

There had been an incident at the school. Both children.

Jake had barely heard the rest, insisting he would be there straight away.

He'd hung up and relayed the fact he was going to have to leave early to his section's leader. A short comment about him having to make it up -- with a smile that suggested he not worry about it because there wasn't anything much for them to do that afternoon -- and Jake had left the Ministry. Apparating just a short walk from the school in a nearby alley, the man had hurried purposefully towards the school. The receptionist had been signing him in to the building when the main entrance's doors opened again. Jake hadn't really looked up at that point, too worried about finding out what had happened to his children to worry about another person coming in.

"Ah, Mr and Mrs Newbury, you made it!"

Adrienne's teacher smiled at him warmly, but Jake's eyes had moved to see who the other person was that would have been mistaken for-

"Azalea," Jake half greeted, half questioned. He hadn't expected... but his mind couldn't process with that at the moment, instead turning back to Miss Finch. "Where are the children? Are they okay?" Jake asked, feeling his own sentiments matching to the witch beside him who was waiting without breathing for answer.

"They're both okay, but there has been an incident, and we need to talk to you both." Miss Finch replied, motioning for them both to follow her.

Jake's eyes moved questioningly across to Azalea, but he followed, wondering what on earth could have happened for them both to be called in to the school.

The fact that neither Adrienne or Ivan were Azalea's children had yet to register with Jake.

Nor the fact that she didn't need to be here.

But she was.

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Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Tue Oct 20, 2020 4:31 pm

If forced to recount, Azalea would admit in the future that she had no memory of being more scared than she had in the fifteen minutes it took to grab her keys and run to her car, gearing it into unlawful speeds as she drove to the school imagining what kind of horrible scenarios had befallen the Newbury children. Stopping the minivan into the emergency parking right in front of the administration building, the brunette had rushed in without registering, heading straight for reception.

Only to see Jake Newbury already there.

The knot building inside her twisted painfully. It must have been bad if they had called them both.

"Ah, Mr and Mrs Newbury, you made it!"

The words barely registered to the witch as she came to stand beside Jake, her lips parting to ask the question the Auror beat her to.

"Where are the children? Are they okay?"

"They're both okay, but there has been an incident, and we need to talk to you both."

"They-they're okay?" the witch asked, reconfirming Miss Finch's statement as her shoulders visibly sagged where she stood, the relief flooding though her frame. "Could you n-not have made that clear in your message? Do you have any id-" the American witch stopped, unable to go on as the teacher eyed her with a mixture of annoyance and apology.

"i assure you it's very serious, Mrs. Newbury, now if you'll step through the principal's office please."

Somehow, the three managed to do just that, walking into an impersonal, spartan office where a silver haired woman with square framed glasses sat behind a desk. the files on ehr table were clearly permanent records,. Two fo the three names were familiar on said files.

"Mrs. Briggs, may I produce Ivan and Adrienne's parents."

"Of course, please have a seat," the principal invited. "Thank you, Miss Finch," she dismissed the class teacher in a clipped tone. once it was just the three of them, she turned her attention to Jake and Azalea.

"I'm sorry to have to inform you that there was a scuffle in the playground during lunch," Mrs. Briggs began and Azalea stiffened in her chair. If Camoens had hurt Ivan or Adrienne...

"Apparently Adrienne felt the need to walk over to some of the older boys and kick them in the ankles. She kicked two boys. She then proceeded to sit on top of one and made him "eat sand" as everyone else watched." At this, the head of the school pointed to the third file on her desk, the one labelled "Scot Harrison".

"Some of Scott's friends decided after a while to call for a teacher, which was when Ivan came to the scene and tried to get her off young Scott. He was not successful but when the teachers arrived on the scene, he tried to take the blame for it. He claimed Adrienne couldn't have kicked down the boys despite the fact that the whole playground saw her and she looked like she had been in a fight."

"I'm sorry, but is Adrienne hurt in any way," Azalea interrupted, not caring for the rest fo the story right now. "Or Ivan for that matter."

The principal looked at her sternly before she replied. "Adrienne has torn her pinafore badly but is otherwise unhurt. Ivan wasn't inveigled in the fight at all despite his claims so he autobahn been hurt either. Scott Harrison on the other hand has a bruised face, bruised ankles and is still spitting sand from his trachea."

The audible sigh of relief from the Potion Mistress was met with an unimpressed grimace from Mrs. Briggs.

"Mrs. Newbury, I hope you understand that we have a strict no violence policy here at this school. Under no circumstances are our students allowed to settle their differences with their fists. So I would like to take this opportunity to encourage you to reflect on what make your daughter act out in this manner."

The brunette remained quite, looking to Jake for an answer. Adrienne was a boisterous but good kid, there was no reason for ehr to go after someone like that.

"The teachers and I have discussed this and we feel a fitting punishment would be to suspend both siblings from school for a week. A week I hope in which you two will work with them on alternative ways of conflict resolution."

"Why is Ivan being punished?" Azalea asked, unsure if she had heard right. "He didn't hit anyone."

"He lied, Mrs. Newbury."

"To protect his sister."

"I fail to see how that makes it better."

The Slytherin Head was just about to explain how that made it better when Jake cut into the conversation. "Can we see the kids."

"Of course Mr. Newbury, they're in homeroom, their bags packed. You can take them home."

Just as she finished, a knock on the door sounded with the receptionist poling her head in. "Mrs. Briggs, Katherine and Cyr Harrison are here." Azalea felt more than saw the older lady's sigh as she ushered them out of her office and prepared to meet with Scott's parents.

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Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Tue Oct 20, 2020 6:02 pm

It was scarily too easy how quickly Jake's body had found itself finding it's tune with Azalea's. Where her body sagged with relief, his left hand had moved to her arm to steady her silently. His eyes had never left the teacher as she spoke of how the situation still remained serious, even though both children were okay. It didn't matter to him, the children were okay, whatever else this might be, it wouldn't matter, because both of his children were okay.

Instead, they were left to ponder what was so serious as they were directed through to the Principal's office. Upon entering, they found the room devoid of the children, and instead the Principal sat waiting for them. The polite offer to take a seat, that was not really up for discussion was taken by both of them, though, greeting the Principal and then waiting for the information they had both been summoned for.

As the woman, Mrs Briggs, started with the explanation, Jake's features schooled themselves in to one of a frown when the talk of fighting came in to being. He was not a delusional parent who would suggest his children had never fought, but he would have to say that his children were not exactly... they didn't fight often. Mostly because Ivan was not interested in the more boisterous activities, and because Adrienne had learned that such behaviour wasn't allowed. Of course, there were mishaps, but they were children, these things happened.

It was not a surprise, therefore, when Adrienne's name had been given as the one who'd been caught fighting.

And it was almost comically written that she had taken down not one, but two boys, and then taken on a third. Thankfully, the Auror had managed to hide the smile that wanted to dance across his face, most likely due to the stern look he was getting from the Principal who's eyes were dancing between the two of them to relay just how seriously she was taking this misdemeanour.

Just in time, Azalea had pitched in to check, once more, that both of the children were okay.

And just as she did, Jake's hand had rested gently on her knee to reassure her that all of this was okay. The children were okay, Miss Finch had already told them that much. The reassurance came afresh, though, and Azalea's body relaxed anew with the answer not changing.

The retort that came shortly after Azalea's sigh, though, annoyed Jake. Clearly the school had not felt it necessary to ask Adrienne, or Ivan, or even the other child involved what had caused the issue. Instead that was being relayed to them to find out. "So you haven't asked the children what happened?" Jake asked, the frown upon his features back in place as he did so. The Principal had not seen fit to answer the question, instead laying down the law within her school, and the decision that had already been made.

Azalea's questions were only further proving that the case had been closed by the school without all evidence laid out before them.

"Can we see the kids."

Jake cut across the two women, deciding he'd heard enough in that moment.

"Of course Mr. Newbury, they're in homeroom, their bags packed. You can take them home."

"Thank you," Jake replied to that much, getting from his seat and waiting only briefly for Azalea to follow. He would have to speak to his children before he could fight the battle of the week suspension, and Mrs Briggs wasn't going to do things right.

"Mrs. Briggs, Katherine and Cyr Harrison are here."

Jake turned back to the Principal in that moment. "Scott's parents are Katherine and Cyr Harrison?" He asked the Principal who looked back at him in the same stern manner she'd been giving them the whole time.

"Yes, Mr Newbury."

This time, Jake's lips moved up in to the smile that he'd been fighting before, but contained the laugh that threatened to bubble outwards. "Thank you," the man replied before leaving the office with Azalea, and heading to the home room where the children would be waiting. Should the witch ask what was so amusing, Jake would wave it off with a comment of 'later', before he pushed the door to home room open.

Inside, the two children were waiting for them. Ivan tucked behind a book in an effort to try to hide the puffiness of his eyes, and Adrienne was pacing back and forth like a caged animal with her backpack on her shoulders. Her pinafore was torn, Mrs Briggs had gotten that much right, but otherwise Adrienne looked her usual self.

"Daddy! Zay-lea!" The young witch declared happily, hurrying to them both with the indecisive look on her features of who she was going to hug first. Azalea had helped the young witch out as she dropped down on her knees and scooped Adrienne up in her arms, hugging her fiercely before holding her back to check over the young girl's health.

"She's okay," Jake reassured Azalea softly, before looking back to Ivan. "Come on, Ive, time to go home." He added, waiting for Ivan to get up and move towards them before he looked back to Adrienne again.

Adrienne who was busy telling the story of everything that had happened.

"The teachers are trying to say I did something wrong, but I didn't!" She protested to Azalea, stealing glances up at him to try to ensure she had both their attention. "Scott was being really mean, and I told him to stop. But he wouldn't stop, and his friends kept laughing at his jokes, but they weren't funny!"

"Can we go home now?" Ivan asked, walking past the other three without an answer, but cutting over his sister's story in the process. "Come on, Adrienne."

Adrienne's eyes moved between all of them quickly, and then back to Azalea who was paying the most attention to her in that moment. "They were being horrible to Ivan!"

Ivan turned in a flash back to them all. "I told you not to say that!"

"But it's true..."

"How about we talk about it when we get home?" Jake offered, trying to find an even playing field for them.

"Is Zay-lea coming?" Adrienne asked, attaching herself to the older witch so that the answer couldn't be no.

"If..." For the first time, Jake realised what he hadn't since he'd arrived at the school. Azalea's presence here had not been a question the whole time, not until now. Not until the children pointed out that Azalea's coming home was a question, not a given. That her role in this was optional. The man's eyes found Azalea's and the apology would be there, she didn't need to be here, she didn't have to be here. "If Azalea would like to come home with us, she can, but she might have other things she needs to do."

The youngest Newbury looked pointedly back at Azalea, with the question of what could possibly be more important than coming home with them.

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Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Tue Oct 20, 2020 6:35 pm

Any curiosity the Potion Mistress might have had on why Jake was smiling or asking after the victimized boy's parents was forgotten the moment she laid eyes on the children. Scooping Adrienne up into her arms, she held the girl tightly before moving her gaze to Ivan who looked rather put off for having to deal with this. The reason was revealed soon after as Adrienne began to talk.

A part of Azalea wanted to congratulate the little girl for defending her brother. Another wanted to hug Ivan just as fiercely but the ten year old didn't seem to care to be hugged right now. His ego was clearly bruised at what his sister had done. And from Jake's expressions, the witch assumed he had not been aware his son was being bullied at school.

"Is Zay-lea coming?"

The child's question caught both adults off guard. Jake because he hadn't realized she was the odd one out here and Azalea because it had just occurred to her that she was ready to go with them, never having given it a second thought. It seemed natural to go with Jake and the kids.

"If Azalea would like to come home with us, she can, but she might have other things she needs to do."

"I've got my car up front, I can follow you guys," she offered, her suggestion only making Adrienne hold on to her tighter. Fortunately Jake revealed that he had apperated here and was without a car so five minutes later, all four of them were bundled into the shiny black minivan, Jake in the driver's seat with Ivan enjoying shotgun and still saying very little. Azalea seat in the back with Adrienne who kept talking, now moving on front describing why she had made Scott Harrison eat sand to how she had done it. Azalea tried not to look too reproachful as she caught Jake grinning slightly in the front mirror.

"Now now, pushing someone I never the answer sweetie," Azalea tried to coax the child, only for Adrienne to fire back.

"Well, he's a poopy head. And this stupid pinafore kept me from getting him real good. I want trousers like the boys next time."

Normally, they would have stopped to get ice cream on an accusation they were together on, but today that would resemble too much like rewarding bad behavior so the Newburies and Azalea drove straight back home.

"Alright guys, books and bags where they belong and off with the uniforms. We're having a bath while your dad figures out snacks." Dividing and conquering seemed like the best idea at the time. Ivan insisted he could bathe on his own, and Azalea let him. Adrienne whoever would not pass up an opportunity to splash around in the tub. Twenty minutes later, both children had been washed and changed and were munching on sandwiches at the kitchen table before the adults began once again.

"Now, we've heard from Adrienne, Ivan would you like tot ell us what happened," Jake began.

The little boy shrugged, giving a non answer.

"Come on kiddo," Azalea encouraged. "It's okay, you can tell us. I promise we're on your side."

"Oh yeah, then where were you all summer?"

the question left Azalea floored, unable to answer his simple question.

"Ivan, we don't talk to guests like this. Please apologize to Azalea."

"I have homework," the boy retorted, hopping off his chair and heading to his room. Jake made to go after him but Azalea held the Auror back with a small touch on his arm.

"It's okay, give him some time yeah?"

Adrienne, who had been munching her sandwich happily throughout the uncomfortable exchange merely rolled her eyes. "He's just upset I told you Scott was being mean to him. He didn't want anyone to know, but I don't understand why... You're supposed to report bad things, aren't you daddy?"

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Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Tue Oct 20, 2020 6:57 pm

Getting home had been the easy part. It was as they got home that Jake found himself... unsure on how to deal with the children for the first time in a long time. Azalea had worked it out amply though, insisting the kids go and get changed and washed up whilst he sourced them some food in return. As both children had hurried off, Jake had given Azalea a thankful smile before she'd been pulled along by Adrienne.

With it only just being passed the children's lunch time, he'd only prepped a couple of sandwiches for them, and then a couple of extras for himself and Azalea to eat through. The children had returned in their after school clothes, and Adrienne had taken to the food happily. Ivan had just looked at the bread with distaste, not wanting to eat anything. Perhaps he wasn't hungry, Jake had reasoned internally before he broached the topic of what had happened at school.

Ivan had refused to answer first.

Azalea's coaxing had only made him retaliate in an unkind manner, and get up from the table with permission.

Jake had tried to go after him, but Azalea's hand had caught his wrist, and though the touch had only been soft, it had been the reminder that she knew how to deal with these situations better than he did. Cornering Ivan in to talking about the day would not make him open up. Nor would getting angry at him for saying things he hadn't really meant. Jake had sat back in his chair by that time, lifting his sandwich and taking a large bite from it to dissuade his frustration from growing in that moment.

"He's just upset I told you Scott was being mean to him. He didn't want anyone to know, but I don't understand why... You're supposed to report bad things, aren't you daddy?"

Jake's features softened again, for as frustrating as his son's outburst might be, his daughter always put things in to perspective.

"Of course, Adrienne." Jake replied to her question. "Especially if other people are being mean to you or Ivan."

Adrienne nodded eagerly, then took her attention back to her sandwich for a moment, munching off another small bite. Her eyes couldn't decide which adult they wanted to stay on as she chewed.

"What exactly did Scott do to Ivan?" Jake asked once Adrienne had finished her mouthful, knowing better than to try to talk to the child whilst she was eating because she was still not clear on the 'don't talk with your mouth full rule'.

"He keeps calling Ivan a nerd," Adrienne explained, tilting her head to the side a bit as she thought about what she was saying. "And tripping Ivan up in the playground. But today, he knocked Ivan's book out of his hands, and said that he was the biggest nerd ever!"

Jake took the information on board and looked across to Azalea in that moment, digesting the news and thinking through what he might reply to that.

"And Scott's friends?"

"They just laughed, and stopped Ivan from getting his book." Adrienne said simply. "That's why I only kicked them. Scott needed to eat the sand for saying mean things, that's what Lucy's mum did when she said a bad word. But she had soap, not sand. I didn't have soap."

Once again, it took all of Jake's will power not to smile at his daughter's explanation, instead keeping to the fact he had to explain to Adrienne why she couldn't do these things.

"You know, when others are being mean like Scott and his friends, we shouldn't be the ones who punish them for doing these things." Jake explained carefully. "That's what the teachers are for, they will talk to Scott and the other boys and tell them that it's not okay to call Ivan names, or do mean things to him."

"But Ivan doesn't want to tell anyone." Adrienne replied, looking to Azalea to see what the witch thought of that dilemma.

Jake relented then, knowing Azalea would likely be able to get the point across better than he could in that moment. Azalea had always been better with children, that much Jake would rely on now.

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Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Tue Oct 20, 2020 7:30 pm

Azalea was still slightly dazed by the child's accusation, mostly because she could hear the ring of truth in it. Ivan had every right to question where she had been, especially after she had spent almost every day with them the alst few weeks before summer holidays. In all her worries about how Ethan would be affected by ehr long absences, the witch had never considered if Jake's children would be affected too.

She had clearly been wrong.

"What exactly did Scott do to Ivan?"

The American witch snapped back to the here and now, focusing on little Adrienne as she told the story. By all accounts it seemed a classic case of primary school bullying. Name calling, jokes, all at the expense of someone who didn't wish to fight back. The witch felt ashamed as she realized that she, and more likely Jake, had probably bullied someone the same way when they were children. Azalea in ehr teen years had at least befriended "nerds", having secretly discovered she was one. Jake whoever had definitely been a guy's guy.

Unsure how to reprimand his daughter for soemthing he probably couldn't discourage in his heart, Jake looked at her blankly. Thinking over a minute, Azalea finally spoke up.

"Alright here's what we're going to do," the young woman stated, looking to Adrienne as if laying out a serious battle plan. "We're going to follow Ivan's lead and get to our homework. Then we're going to make a really yummy dinner. Your favorite main course, Ivan's favorite dessert. Then we're going to have a sock puppet show and bedtime. And tomorrow, I'm going to send Mrs. Briggs an email telling her what Scott's been doing and I'm going to tell her you're sorry for pushing him - Now don't give me that look Adrienne, pushing people is bad and just because he did something bad doesn't mean you can too. You don't want to be like Scott Harrison, do you?"

Adrienne shook her head fervently at that.

"So I'm going to send Mrs. Briggs an email telling her you're really sorry. And I will ask her to please look into Scott because he needs to be punished too. Then we'll wait to see what the school says."

Adrienne nodded, realizing this was the best deal she was going to be offered today. Her moroseness soon gave way to a happy smile though as she realized what Azalea had said. "Wait, we're having steak and kidney pie for din dins? And potato letters?"

"I'll even spell out your name with them," Azalea grinned back, banishing the somber mode completely.

A few minutes later, Adrienne too had disappeared to finish her homework, leaving Jake and Azalea alone in the room. Realizing she may have overstepped, the witch turned to him with a hesitant look. "Sorry, I didn't mean to reward bad behavior. It's just, the kids have had a rough day so I figured a good dinner was in order."

When Jake didn't reply for a minute, she added "Don't worry, I'll write to the principal and sort it out. Adrienne didn't do anything wrong. And if they can't see that then that's on them." The witch barely kept herself from saying she would have made Scott Harrison eat sand too, if she had been in the youngest Newbury's place.

Once they had discussed it, the couple started on dinner as once again, dividing and conquering seemed the best approach. Ivan was left alone for most of the evening while Jake and Adrienne did her homework, played around in the living room and helped to "taste test" the source of the delicious smells coming from the kitchen while Azalea worked on the children's food. Around five in the evening, Ivan finally emerged from his room, drawn out by the sounds of everyone laughing and putting on a puppet show.

"Hey, there's our man. Come on Ive, pick up a sock."

The relief on the boy's face at his day not being addressed was palpable as he joined in and a few minutes later was laughing along with everyone else.

"Alright everyone, dinner will be ready in ten," Azalea announced from the kitchen window, wearing an apron that proclaimed her as "WORLD'S BEST GRANDPA!". "Last one to wash up is doing dishes"

"Not me" both children called out simultaneously before running to wash up, leaving Jake to gather up the puppets and return them to the toy box.

Once again finding herself alone with Jake, the witch grinned. "You too mister, unless you want to be stuck with the dishes."

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Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Wed Oct 21, 2020 8:13 am

Azalea had done exactly what Jake had known she would. Easily working through to a solution for Adrienne and Ivan's situation, and promising to sort things out with the school for Adrienne. It took a moment for Adrienne to be completely on board with what was being said, but with the final explanation that they didn't want to be like Scott, Adrienne had relented and gone to get her homework, almost too happy with the plan for dinner.

Jake had watched her go before his attention came back to Azalea. The apology came from her lips before he could say anything, leaving him momentarily unsure what to say. The additional explanation was waved away by the man. "You don't have to apologise, you dealt with all of it perfectly. Thank you, I really do appreciate it."

They broke down in to a discussion on how to deal with the school for a few minutes, before deciding on the next plan. Jake had moved off to find Adrienne and her homework so that he could support her with her work -- stopping only for a moment by Ivan's door to see if the boy was okay. From the doorway, the back of his son's head could be seen bent over his work as diligently as always. Turning away from that much, Jake had collected Adrienne -- and her lunchbox which she always forgot to bring back downstairs each night -- and brought her back down to the dinner table to do her work.

The tasks kept Adrienne busy for the most part, allowing Jake to move between the kitchen and the dining room, helping Azalea where necessary, or else washing up the children's lunch boxes from school. Neither one of them spoke much, except to ask if the other needed anything, or in Jake's case, to compliment the smell of Azalea's cooking. He'd missed that, no, he'd missed this. Having Azalea around, it made everything seem... so much easier. Yes, he'd had Clara's help, but the psychic... well, she wasn't Azalea.

No more than an hour later, Adrienne was getting tired of her work. The young witch had been getting slower and slower with her word practices, until Jake finally relented, kissing the top of her head and telling her she could finish the rest of the homework tomorrow when she'd had some rest. As if instantly renewed with energy, the youngest Newbury had bounced from the table to go and find the puppet set, leaving all of her homework out on the table. Chuckling to himself, Jake had turned his wand on the books which packed themselves away, before following his daughter in to the lounge, followed by Azalea who had just put the pie in the oven to cook through slowly until dinner time.

Adrienne had taken on the role of story teller, as she always did, and it came as no surprise when Jake got handed the princess and the dragon, and Adrienne took up the role of the knight, going on an epic journey to fight the dragon in it's lair. When the princess asked to be saved, Adrienne had screwed her nose up, and insisted that if the princess wanted to be saved, she could do it herself. Jake and Azalea had laughed openly at that, before the story went on to a new adventure entirely. Ivan had come down at the time where Adrienne's character had been telling all the terribly lame knock knock jokes, and looked vastly confused at why Jake and Azalea were laughing so much at jokes that wouldn't normally be funny.

The invitation for him to join, though, had brought him in to the circle, and the four of them had continued to play happily until dinner required Azalea's attention again.

"Last one to wash up is doing dishes!"

Jake had been beaten from the floor before he could even fathom what he was supposed to be doing. Getting back to his feet as the sound of the water running from the downstairs bathroom met his ears. "I think I might have lost..." Jake replied to Azalea as she insisted he wash up to. "Yes ma'am!" He replied cheekily, heading out to the bathroom to check the children -- mostly Adrienne -- had washed their hands properly, before doing his own.

The three Newburys had returned to the dining room one by one, Ivan and Adrienne taking up their seats, whilst Jake moved in to the kitchen to help Azalea with the plating of the food. Four steaming plates had entered the room, the gentle reminder to Adrienne to not eat it without blowing on it first to cool it down had had to be given, before Jake dipped back to get them all a glass of water.

"My dinner spells my name! Thank you, Zay-lea!" Adrienne was explaining excitedly as Jake placed the glasses down, looking over at Adrienne's plate as she spelt out her name with the help of the letters, speaking each letter in turn.

"So does mine!" Ivan pointed out. "Twice!" He added.

Adrienne looked to her brother's plate, contemplated for a moment, then looked back at her own thoughtfully. "But mine is longer!" She insisted, deciding that she had it better, despite both children having the same amount of letters on each of their plates.

Looking down to his own plate, Jake found his own name on his plate, with a mixture of random letters that meant nothing, and smiled to himself. Sometimes it was the small things that really made a difference.

From there, the children had tucked in heartily with their food, Jake following suit. The conversation was quite minimal until they'd all finished.

"So, the deal was Adrienne's favourite dinner, and... what was the other bit, Adrienne?" Jake asked as they all finished.

"Ivan's favourite dessert!"

"Right you are!" Jake confirmed, looking to Ivan, who's smile had grown tenfold with this news.

"Banana split? With extra ice cream, and sauce?" He asked, watching both of the adults nod the confirmation. The wonderment spread on the boy's features before Jake and Azalea moved back through to the kitchen. Jake to wash the dishes, Azalea to prep the dessert that had been offered. Fifteen minutes later, the adults had returned with four bowls of dessert, and sat back with the children again, tucking in to the very sweet dessert.

Ivan had devoured his just ahead of Adrienne in record time, leaving two clean bowls before them. Jake had dismissed both of the children to the lounge as he and Azalea finished their own bowls and set to the task of tidying the kitchen up. With the help of a wand, though, the task was completed quite quickly, giving them an hour before the children needed to head to bed. The four of them sat on the sofa to watch one of the children's movies, Adrienne curled up in Azalea's lap, Ivan sat leant against the arm of the sofa watching the screen intently, and Jake sat beside Azalea, arm over the back of the sofa, watching the TV without comment.

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Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Wed Oct 21, 2020 1:19 pm

Dinner went as well as it could given the circumstances, both children enjoying their meal. Ivan's mood lifted considerably at the heaping bowl of dessert placed in front of him and after a few bites, it was like the day had never happened. Of course, Azalea knew better than to take it as a victory. Sooner or later, they would have to talk to the boy but for now, he was happy scooping ice cream and fruit into his mouth and for that, she was grateful.

After dinner time was declared movie time and Adrienne as the first to offer her pick. They needed up watching a film called "Cars", an animated movie where all cars talked and raced and where humans were mysteriously missing. Adrienne enjoyed the actions sequences while Ivan watched silently as the car society functioned as a mirror of the human one, pointing out now and then that some engines would have not supported the speeds these cars were travelling at.

By the time the end credits were rolling Adrienne was nodding off against her torso, settled comfortably in the older witch's lap. Ivan seemed to be holding up better but Azalea could see the beginning of exhaustion creeping into him. The witch was just about to suggest bedtime when a shrill ring of Jake's phone interrupted the quiet, waking Adrienne up immediately.

"Nanny!" she squealed as Jake reached for the phone. A minute later, Alexis's voice could be heard through the phone speaker, calling to wish her grandchildren goodnight. She spoke to Ivan briefly before the phone was handed to his little sister who wasted no time telling the Newbury matriarch that Azalea was here and had made the bestest dinner.

"Did she know?" Alexis asked neutrally, maing Azalea look away.

"Yeah huh! She made my favorite dinner and Ian's favorite dessert. And then we watched Cars and now she's going to stay over with her and tuck us into bed." Almost comically, the child realized ehr mistake the moment she made it, her eyes growing big and round at the realization that no eon had confirmed Azalea would be staying the night.

"Zay-Lea, you are staying with us right?" the child asked, phone still in hand. "Daddy, please invite her to stay."

Ivan looked away at this, pretending he was not interested in the conversation.

"Azalea's always invited to stay here,' Jake answered with a warm smile to his daughter, making her squeal once more.

"Nanny, she's staying!!!"

"Good for her," Alexis replied, her tone impassive.

The conversation carried on for a few more minutes before the children wished their grandmother goodnight and hung up. "Alright, into PJs and then bed," Jake announced, scooping Adrienne up into his arms while Ivan followed. "I'll get them changed, you've done enough for the day," he managed, turning to look at Azalea who was still in the middle of processing that she had once again been caught unaware. The witch had somehow just assumed she was staying. The fact that it had been a question...

Azalea shook her head, watching the three Newburies disappear upstairs before moving to the kitchen. Jake had done a good enough job of cleaning up but that unfortunate left her without any work to do. Moving towards the entrance hall, the witch noticed a pile of papers on the side table and got to work. Her car keys wee hung on the hook and the mail sorted by order of importance. Bills, a simple brown envelope sealed with an HMRC logo, an invitation to some charity event at the Ministry and finally flyers of various sales and promotions.

Having cleaned up there, the witch moved to the kitchen again, turning on he electric ketch for hot water. Five minutes later, a steaming cup of coffee and tea appease were siting on the kitchen island, awaiting Jake as he finally made his way down to ehr again.

"Kid's asleep?" she asked, motioning for him to take a seat before the steaming cup of tea. "Or can I sneak in and say goodnight?"

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Subject: Re: Now my bed sheets smell like you (Jazalea) Wed Oct 21, 2020 1:59 pm

The only hiccup in the evening had been when his mom had called. Jake had looked to Azalea in the moment Adrienne had insisted Azalea would be staying them with... worry. Worry that hadn't been necessary as when he replied the witch was always welcome to stay, she hadn't refused the option. Adrienne had been much too happy to worry about the rest, and his mom much too invested in talking to the children to raise questions.

By the time the call had been brought to an end, Adrienne was struggling to keep herself awake, and had curled in to him instantly when he'd picked her up from the sofa with the promise of getting them both to bed. Ivan had led the way as he told Azalea that he'd got this bit, before the three Newburys vanished upstairs.

Adrienne had been too tired to change herself, trying her hardest to keep awake as she talked tiredly about Azalea staying with them. They'd managed to navigate the pyjamas, and then gotten Adrienne to the bathroom to brush her teeth in next to no time, though, Jake helping his youngest child as she lazily brushed at her teeth. Ivan had appeared in the middle to do his own, and the three of them had waited out the two minutes of cleaning time with a tired patience. Adrienne hadn't tried to hide her tiredness after rinsing her mouth, reaching out to him and being picked back up.

Jake had put Adrienne to bed with no fuss, the child only just still this side of conscious as he pulled the covers over her small frame. Incoherent mumblings were all Jake got as he pressed a kiss to her forehead and wished her a good sleep. No fuss was made as he stood up, either, indicating the young witch had truly worn herself out.

Ivan had only just climbed in to bed when Jake entered his room. His renewed mood seemed to be holding as Jake moved to tuck him in.

"You sleep well, Ive." Jake told him as he placed a kiss on his son's head.

"Dad," Ivan spoke gently, his eyes flickering to the doorway to be sure they were alone. Jake hummed softly to acknowledge the word. "Can you tell Azalea I'm sorry?"

"Of course."

"I didn't mean to say what I did."

"We know, but you need to apologise to Azalea, too. You're a big boy now." Jake replied, though he knew deep down Ivan was just saying this now because he wanted to test the waters. "But, Azalea and I both know that you were upset, and you didn't mean it. Which is why we need to talk about things, but only when you're ready."

Ivan nodded, taking on board what had been said, but not yet wanting to elaborate on the day's events more than he had to. They were making progress, though, even if it was small steps, it was progress.

"Now, come on, settle down for some sleep, you've had a big day." Jake finalised, waiting for Ivan to settle and close his eyes before he gently mussed the boy's hair for good nature. "Night, Ivan."

"Night, dad."

Getting up from the bed, Jake crossed the room and turned out the light. The door moved to the almost closed position it would always take up, and for a moment, Jake just stood on the landing, listening for both the children. No sound came from either room for a minute, maybe more, before Jake very gently descended the stairs to find Azalea.

"Kid's asleep?"

"Adrienne is out for the count." Jake replied with a fond smile upon his lips. "I don't think Ivan was asleep when I came down, truthfully, but he won't be far off." Taking up the seat and pulling the cup of tea towards him, Jake warmed his hands for a moment. "Thank you, for today, and the tea.

"Ivan apologised, to you, for what he said earlier. And I'm sorry for that too. I've told him that he has to apologise to you, when he's ready, but, please do know that he is sorry." The apology wouldn't mean so much from him, but Jake was not going to allow Azalea to believe that Ivan had meant what he said. He'd been upset, and though it didn't make the outburst okay, it wasn't without understanding.

From there, Azalea had excused herself to go and check on the children, even if they were asleep. Some habits wouldn't change, and Jake had jokingly said he would come and find her if she wasn't back in ten minutes.

When the witch had left, Jake had turned back to his cup of tea, sipping from it carefully as he let out a soft sigh. He would have to work out what to do with the children tomorrow, with them not being at school, and him being back at the Ministry, it hadn't been ideal. He could call upon Clara, though... hopefully. But the thoughts were put to the side as he noticed the pile of post on the counter. Reaching across, the man put aside the gas and electricity bill without opening it, knowing those would be paid by direct debit, they weren't important right now. A bank statement, that again, the man didn't need due to his online access, and the check he did every few days when he logged in to pay something. It could wait for another day.

It was the brown envelope that had stuck out, in and amongst the white envelopes.

The official crest of the HMRC was upon the envelope, and Jake couldn't help but frown at the envelope. Very rarely did he get a letter from HMRC. His tax affairs had always been dealt with by the accountants who popped their head up but once a year, asked him to sign some things, and inevitably give him a tax bill that 'really wasn't that bad, Mr Newbury, considering all your income'.

This one, though, didn't look like the usual ones.

Jake had undone the envelope carefully, and pulled out the greyish paper. Emblazoned in the top left was his name, and then his details for HMRC.

Below it, in bold heading were words Jake had not expected.

HMRC Tax Investigation

Jake's eyes had hurried on to read the rest of the letter. His accounts, apparently, had all been flagged for fraudulent, offshore transactions. The accounts for which all of his money were sat had been frozen indefinitely, until he could prove the viability of the transactions listed. His accounts would also now be required to be audited by a HMRC employee to verify he'd paid all of his taxes correctly.

A response was due within ten days of the date of the letter.

Jake's eyes had been drawn to the figures that were being investigated.

None of which he recognised.

All of which looked to have been done from his accounts.

The cup in his hand came back down to the counter a little heavier than he'd meant as his eyes scanned over the paperwork again, trying to find the true meaning behind all of the information and coming up short. He didn't even have that kind of money... how...

When Azalea would come back in to the room, she would find the man reading, and reading, and rereading the paper in front of him. Jake's face would be the same kind of grey as the paper in his hand, and unlike the man's normal instincts, he would not notice her enter the room again.

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» When you try your best but you don't succeed (Jazalea)
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