Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea)

Subject: Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea) Wed Feb 22, 2023 7:10 pm

Having finished their dinner, Azalea and Jacques quickly left the restaurant, completely unaware of the camera furiously clicking their pictures for a tabloid that would publish them when the couple was thousands of miles away and could do nothing about it. As Jacques had promised, there was indeed a bag in the car though what it contained remained to be seen. Throughout then drive, they spoke of their destination, of Mimosa, of what they might expect to find and just chatted when they ran out of productive things to discuss. Once again, Azalea was forced to conclude how easy Jacques Clement was to communicate with, and how attentive he was to not just her spoken words but also her body language. Little hints of turning up the air conditioning if she felt cold or loosening her seatbelt if she sat too straight showed the man's true focus on his conversation partner.

Eventually, they arrived at the small hanger where their plane waited. Handing the car keys over to a member of staff who would get it back to the palace garage manager, Jacques held her steady as he walked her to the runway in her heels. The witch was not dressed for navigating the large stairs leading up to the privet jet and it showed.

Once inside, Azalea noted that the interior of the jet had been modified from when she had boarded it last. Instead of six seats, only two large, comfortable ones remained, easily able to be joined into one more comfortable lounging space. The other half of the cabin had been converted into a makeshift bedroom complete with a double bed, a walk in shower and bedside tables.

"So, who's flying this thing?" Azalea asked with a mischievous smile as she sat down on one of the seats. Jacques merely grinned back, pointing to himself in the universal sign of "this guy". Encouraging her to rest and change while he took off, the Frenchman started to leave for the main cockpit, reassuring her that he would be back once the place was on autopilot.

"Wait, before you leave-" the brunettes called out, getting off her seat. Turning with her back towards the Clement Heir, she continued. "Could you please unzip me... Sorry, but if I need to change..."

"Of course," the young Auror responded, moving closer to her. She felt his fingers on her black, gently sweeping away the curtain of shimmering brown hair over her shoulder and reach for the discreet black zipper of her dress. The manner in which he easily navigated the chain showed he was not new to undressing women. Not by a long shot.

"Thanks," the witch muttered. For a moment, it seemed like he would reply, but then he simply walked away to the pilot's module.

While Azalea shimmied out of her dress and heels.

Opening her bag proved what Jacques had said, that it was Jake who had done the packing. The man had probably grabbed random jeans and tops at hand without much care for color coordination, meaning Azalea was left with perhaps two usable changes of clothes out of the pile hastily folded and shoved in her suitcase.

Extracting a pair of blue jeans and a white top, she put them on over her existing undergarments because Jake had only thought to pack one spare pair. Thankfully, he had managed to pack in a spare pair of shoes at the last moment. Azalea retrieved those sneakers now, finding socks balled up inside them and shaking her head fondly.

When Jacques would return - a rolled up sheet of paper in his hands - he would find Azalea curled up in the comfortable chair, her head resting back and arms wrapped around her knees, her eyes closed to the world and her hair splayed out behind her in an untamed, chocolates brown halo.

Not quite asleep because she could never do that without her potion or Jake by her side, this was the closest to getting some rest the brunette could get. For once just still and letting the world slip away from her mind's grasp.

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Subject: Re: Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea) Sat Feb 25, 2023 4:03 pm

The drive out to the air strip was one that was enjoyable. Catching up with everything that was important in both of their lives. Mimosa took up most of their time, being what they had in common the most. Next came talk of their trip and their expectations of how things would go. Then it moved in to more general territories, Jake, the children, and his own family.

By the time they boarded the plane, Jacques was feeling somewhat giddy of being in charge of the machine. Insisting Azalea rest up whilst he got them up in the air, Jacques was about ready to head back to the cockpit when Azalea spoke.

"Could you please unzip me... Sorry, but if I need to change..."

Automatically, Jacques agreed, a soft 'of course' leaving the Frenchman's lips as he moved across to Azalea. His hands moved to carefully sweep her hair aside, a stronger waft of the witch's perfume moving towards him. It took every inch of his being not to lean in and inhale deeply, instead forcing himself to concentrate on the task at hand. Carefully, the zip moved down, revealing the bare skin beneath. Jacques averted his eyes from there, letting go of the zip when it was almost at the bottom of it's run.

The thank you that came made Jacques nod gently. "Any time," he replied, checking Azalea had everything she needed before heading off. The plane took off not fifteen minutes later. Jacques had guided the vessel up above the UK with ease, finding a portal just out in the Channel that shifted them through to the south of India's coast line. It would reduce their flight significantly, but from here, the Clement's didn't have enough traction to get a safe passage further. Changing the settings over to auto-pilot and setting their course, Jacques got up from the controls, before heading back in to the main part of the plane.

He found Azalea resting, and couldn't help but take her in for a moment, looking as peaceful as he'd seen her for a while.

Not wishing to wake her from the slumber, Jacques moved instead to the other chair, letting out a soft sigh as he sunk in to the chair. Checking his watch, he tapped it a couple of times to get an alarm set for an hour before they had to land. Perhaps he could sleep if Azalea was resting? He looked across at the witch to see if she would stir from her rest.

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Subject: Re: Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea) Sun Feb 26, 2023 3:37 am

Azalea heard the young Auror come in somewhere in the deep peripheries of her mind. Not quite asleep, the witch was comfortable enough in his presence to keep her eyes closed and her minds stilled. Her breathing was slow and her lips parted slightly to attempt a greeting, only to not emit any sound. Was this how it felt to slowly start getting so comfortable around someone that natural sleep was possible?

The thought could be analyzed later however. The long day was finally catching up to the Deputy Headmistress and they had a lengthy flight ahead. A little rest wouldn't hurt. Jacques must have agreed as she felt him move to the seat beside her. His day must have ben just as long as hers, if not longer. Unconsciously, her body turned towards his as he sat down and closed his eyes. Still separated by multiple armrests, Azalea nonetheless leaned his way, as if drawing comfort from the proximity.

They stayed that way for over two hours before the brunette finally opened her eyes. in her downtime, she head had somehow lolled his way, a curtain of dark hair hanging over Jacques' armrest as he slept peacefully. Making sure to move as slowly as she could so as not to wake him, the witch moved from her seat and padded her way softly to the bathroom. She was back twenty minutes later in the same outfit but with semi damp hair. And despite her careful return to the seating area, something about her must have woken the Frenchman.

"It's okay, you can go back to sleep." she soothed, noting the lightening sky outside the windows. They shouldn't have changed time zones so quickly, unless Jacques had veered them through some kind of portal.

On the table by the windows, she saw the rolled up piece of paper he had been holding earlier. It was now unfolded to show a closer map of South East Asia. Never the best at Geography, Azalea could only identify their destination as an island off the coast of Jawa, Indonesia, small and completely nondescript form all the other islands that dotted the ocean there.

Should the man stir again, Azalea would move towards him, the map forgotten for the moment. Fetching an extra blanket from the overhead compartment, she would tuck it around him. Might as well let Jacques sleep for a few more hours. From his careful discussion of his personal life earlier that evening, Azalea got the feeling he wasn't getting a whole lot of sleep lately. Not at the place and not with Kiranjeet either.

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Subject: Re: Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea) Mon Apr 10, 2023 3:09 pm

Jacques' eyes had closed not long after with the knowledge Azalea was resting. It was a light sleep, and not much more than that, his brain all too aware the plane that he was piloting was currently flying itself. Of course, it was safe to put it in to such settings, the idea was for the pilot to get his or her rest, but Jacques Clement would never take the technology for granted. The lightness of the sleep would mean that as soon as Azalea moved from her spot, Jacques was entirely too aware of her movements.

As the witch showered, the man turned in to seat he was in, trying to get comfortable as he dozed further.

Azalea was back shortly after, though, and the Frenchman roused from his sleep, eyes opening slowly. They were somewhat blurry in the few seconds they managed to open, but the maternal fussing from Azalea had put him almost straight back in to the light sleep he'd been in before. The extra blanket mitigated the effects of the air conditioning flowing through the cabin, and the French heir managed to sleep until his watch went off an hour off of their destination.

Jacques woke with a small start, shutting off the alarm and looking around the surroundings. Azalea sat at the table when the man awoke, and looked up at the sound. "Hey..." The Frenchman managed groggily, pushing himself up from the chair he'd been sleeping in. "I'll be right back." He added, heading to the bathroom. Just ten minutes later, the Frenchman emerged having showered and changed. A few water droplets clung to the end of his locks, denoting that much, and the smell of mint permeated from him showing he'd brushed his teeth too.

"You alright?" Jacques would ask, moving to the witch's side to see what she was doing. The map sat across the table, and Jacques smiled slightly. "You found where we're going then. We're landing in Indonesia, and then we have to take a jet ski from there. I'd apparate normally, but seeing as I don't know the area, it's a higher risk of splinching, and I really don't want a run in with Jake."

The last was said with a small laugh as Jacques checked his watch. "You wanna land this plane?" He asked, offering his hand to the witch if she agreed. Of course, it wouldn't be entirely Azalea's doing, but there were two seats at the front of the plane, and Azalea was more than welcome to assist him with the landing procedures if she felt up to it.

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Subject: Re: Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea) Sat Apr 15, 2023 11:52 am

Thankfully, the young heir didn't wake up from his stirrings, spending the next few hours fast asleep. Azalea doubted it was quality sleep though, no one could ever claim to get that in a chair on an airplane. But it was better than nothing, she reasoned as she moved to the table, bringing out her phone and connecting it to the jet's wifi. Sending a quack message to Jake to let him know she was okay, she also send a whispered voice note for Adrienne to placate the child, promising she would be home soon. Once that was done, she logged in to one of her many online portals and began to read her never ending stock of journal articles. It may have counted as work but Azalea found it soothing. The desk was well supplied with stationary and Azalea soon located a red pen and a notepad, making note of the DOI numbers and any corrections she wished to add.

Eventually, Jacques woke up, making the brunettes look up from her work. "Hi you," she greeted the groggy Frenchman with a soft smile. "I figured you could use the extra sleep," she explained before he could ask why she hadn't woken him up. Jacques nodded, getting up to have a showers of his own. When he returned, he looked a lot more awake and alert.

"You missed a spot," she teased, pointing to the water droplets cascading down his short hair and into his T shirt, creating a damp patch. The man made a universal "it will take care of itself" face that Azalea knew all too well from Jake. When he asked if she was alright, the brunettes nodded in reply.

"Just thought I'd put the time to good use, reading up on some journals. It's weird how fast things move now. If you don't stay current with the latest research, you might as well retire."

When he noted she found the map, and confirmed their destination, Azalea nodded again. "Is there something dangerous on the island? I noticed a mark on the map?" However, her question was soon replaced with a curious excitement.

"A jet ski? I haven't ridden one since I was... well very young. But... Jake didn't pack me a bathing suit." the last was said more to herself then Jacques. Her current ensemble of white shirt and blue jeans was nowhere near water ready. But she would adjust, she always did.

"You wanna land this plane?"

"Really, are you serious?" the American witch asked, her eyes sparkling at the notion of flying the plane and for a moment, she looked just like an older version of Mimosa, with the same level of excitement on her features as she looked up adoringly at the Frenchman. "Let's go?" she prompted, taking his hand and heading towards the cockpit.

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Subject: Re: Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea) Sat Apr 15, 2023 12:18 pm

Jacques let out a soft laugh at Azalea's insistence of keeping up with everything in the latest forums. It was moments like this that he had to appreciate just how difficult it must have been for her to adjust once she had come away from the Murray Manor. Catching up with the world and everything that was happening around them. "Well, I'm sure you're doing a great job with it." Jacques encouraged, not knowing the exact content of her research, but wanting to be encouraging nonetheless.

The question of the island remained unanswered by the Frenchman, distracted much more by Azalea's reaction to jetskiing. The man nodded. "It's the only way of getting there, really. I didn't think you'd be adverse to the idea." He explained, and clearly he'd been right about that much. The comment of a bathing suit made Jacques' eyes look away from the witch for a moment, trying his very best not to put such pictures to the forefront of his mind. "Well, that's actually quite easily fixed." The Frenchman replied, reaching for his wand. "If you... you know, show me what you'd like, I can transfigure another article of your clothing in to the bathing suit for you. Though, you'll have to forgive me if it's slightly too tight, or too loose, my magical capabilities with clothing have not been fully trained by the Auror division."

The joke brought a soft peel of laughter from the Frenchman to show he was only teasing, but should Azalea accept, he would be more than willing to use magic to resolve their problem.

The excitement for the jet ski was quickly out shone by the excitement to land the plane. The childlike expression of excitement made the fondness he felt for the witch swell in that moment.

"Well, I wouldn't offer if I didn't mean it!" Jacques pointed out, allowing Azalea to take his hand and lead him in to the cockpit. Showing Azalea to the co-pilot seat, and ensuring her seatbelt was in place, and the headset correctly adjusted to the witch's frame, Jacques had taken his seat beside the witch. Strapping himself in to the plane, too, Jacques pulled on a pair of sunglasses too.

"This is your captain speaking..." Jacques spoke to the witch via the headset, looking across to Azalea with a goofy grin upon his features. "We're about to take the plane from the auto-pilot function, which means control will come back in to the flight column in front of you...."

The next thirty minutes were a blast, if Jacques was truthful. Azalea had taken to the challenge of landing the plane with him quite seriously, and it was only as they were all but ready to touch the ground that the witch had control (with his supervision) of bringing the plane in to land. They barely bounced as they touched the runway, and the brakes could be heard bringing the aircraft down to a speed that they could taxi towards the private hanger that Jacques had arranged for them.

"Well, Professor Harrington... I daresay you've learned another skill today!" Jacques congratulated the witch as the plane finally pulled up inside the hangar. The Frenchman's hands moved to flick switches in front of him, turning off the engines, and putting the plane's main brakes on so it wouldn't move from the spot. "I hope you enjoyed it!" He added, taking his headset off and undoing the belt around his own waist. The duo would move to the main area of the cabin, sorting Azalea's clothes, and his clothes. Azalea would leave briefly to freshen up -- as Lady's always did -- and Jacques would work to shrink everything they needed to take with them in to a rucksack that he could shoulder.

They emerged from the plane about half an hour later, the heat of Indonesia hitting them hard when the door swung open.

After leaving instructions with the men on the ground about refuelling the plane and doing routine checks, Jacques had shown Azalea off to the side of the hanger. There, a motorbike stood waiting for them, two helmets in place. Lifting one up, Jacques offered it to Azalea with a smile. "Safety first, Jake made me promise to bring you back in one piece." The man explained, reaching for his own helmet and pulling it in to place. "It's a short ride from here to the beach, but I didn't want it to be boring."

Swinging his leg over the bike, Jacques turned the key in the ignition, and the roar of the bike filled the hanger. Balancing the bike up level, Jacques held out his hand to help Azalea on to the back, and once he was sure she was secure, they would speed out of the hanger, and off on their way towards the beach, as promise.

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Subject: Re: Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea) Fri Mar 08, 2024 3:15 pm

His assurance that she was doing great was nice, it was meant to be, she reflected as she tucked away her notes and turned to him. In truth some days it still felt as if she was playing catch up. but Azalea was lucky enough to make academia a career and the skill sets were complimentary. And now, with her new position as Deputy Headmistress - in no small part thanks to his family - she would have access to more channels than before to refine and renew her knowledge base.

The witch forgot all about work though, in the instant Jacques offered to modify an existing article of clothing into a swimsuit. A soft laugh blossomed on her lips, her dark brown eyes sparkling with amusement. "Oh really? And here I thought seamstress-ing was an important part of the course?" The resort seemed to light up his own mood further as they both laughed before Azalea softly shook her head.

"Don't worry, Ill work something out. This isn't my first time having to get wet unexpectedly."

At his invitation to help land the plane, the brunette did not need telling twice. Almost in childlike wonder, she followed the Clement heir to the cockpit, taking the co-pilot's seat beside him. Jacques made sure to strap her in securely before adjusting her headset into place. When he spoke next, Azalea could hear him clearly, grinning at his "captain" voice.

We're about to take the plane from the auto-pilot function, which means control will come back in to the flight column in front of you...."

Azalea sat up straighter, trying to follow all the intrusions coming through her headset. Most of it was just her companion narrating what the controls were doing, with the occasional encouragement to press a button or pull a lever down. Either Jacques had meant for it to be an unchallenging experience or flying had really become that simple thank to technology. Whichever it was, Azalea found she isn't mind flying this way.

Especially not with present company.

Half an hour later, they were back on slid ground once again - for about ten minutes.

And then Jacques' motorbike loomed into view.

"Wow," Azalea breathed out as she took in the vehicle. Despite not knowing much about automotives in general, she could tell this was a good one. But then again, excellence just surrounded the Frenchman wherever he went. She supposed it was an unavoidable side effect of being a Clement. "Jake is going to be so jealous I got to ride that bike."

"Safety first, Jake made me promise to bring you back in one piece."

"Don't worry about me," the brunette replied, nonetheless fixing her helmet into place. "I'm tougher than I look."

The bike journey was indeed short, and loud enough to make conversation impossible. Instead the American witch simply enjoyed the muggy tropical wind rushing through her clothes as she held on tight to the man siting in front of her. Once Jacques worked out that the American witch not at all adverse t speed, he revved up the bike, zipping it across the planes at speeds that should not have bene allowed yet were possible due to his station in the world. A thrill like any other unfreckled inside the deputy Headmistress as they rode at breakneck speed across to their destination, arriving exhilarated and out of breath. Mostly from laughing.

The French heir's fondness for both speed and machinery was on clear display. Where his sister preferred horse riding, Jacques was clearly the more modern of the two siblings.

The bike handover was once again a quick process, making Azalea wonder if the Clements had someone in every part of the world to attend to them. They probably did, she reasoned as the two walked together towards the beach.

The salty sea breeze wafted like fresh oxygen around them, making Azalea appreciate their new environment fully for the first time. She couldn't remember when she had been to a beach last. The familiar sight of waves curling and crashing into foamy lines along the sand brought back fond memories of home in Carmel.

"You know, I do miss the beach sometimes," she commented as they neared what appeared to be a small pier jutting down from the beach. Idly, the woman reached out to grasp his hand, fingers slipping through his in a friendly motion. "Not enough to actively think about going to the seaside, not really," she contained, enjoying the sea breeze playing with her hair, tugging at them this way and that until they were probably a tangled mess atop her crown.

"But I suppose that's how life is. You get so busy with the everyday routine, you forget there's something you're missing... But did that mean you didn't miss it enough... or just consoled yourself that it wasn't important enough to miss." The witch didn't expect an answer, not really. It was a rather philosophical question brought out by an unexpected feeling of homesickness.

Finally, they arrived at the waiting jet ski, another probably luxurious machine which Azalea could only describe as "cool" in her head. When the keys were handed to the Frenchman and the attendant left them on their own, the Frenchman looked at her with a teasng glint in his gaze.

"My seamstress-ing skills looking more attractive now?" he asked, making her laugh.

"I think I figured something out," the brunette replied mischievously, reaching for the top button of her white blouse. Slowly, she undid each button, freeing it from its fasteners until the material pooled around her narrow waist. Finally, she removed the shirt completely, folding the garment up and handing it to Jacques.

Leaving her only in her strapless black bra from last night, over the pair of light blue jeans.

"My jeans will dry when we're back on land, no point getting a white shirt wet. It's not a bathing suit but for this journey, I think it will suffice."

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Subject: Re: Fly on the wings of fondness (JacZalea) Sat Mar 09, 2024 2:49 pm

"I know the feeling," Jacques replied to the witch as they pulled their helmets off. "Missing something, but not always actively so." He clarified.

"With Elenore, for example, I miss her fiercely. But, the trouble is, with her being away, and refusing to come home, it almost sits in the background. With everything else going on around me, there just isn't enough time in the day to be actively thinking about her. That... I know it sounds horrible, but it's the reality of the situation." Jacques explained. He knew it wasn't the same, not really, but it was similar in a sense. "But, at least you can easily rectify yours. Mention it to Jake, perhaps you and the children can return to Carmel in the summer, with the children. I'm sure your dad would be over the moon to see you all.

"And, don't worry about Mimosa, I can keep her away from Carmel for a week or two, no problem at all." Jacques added. He understood the family dynamic enough to know that it was difficult to spend time with Azalea's dad, but just because it was difficult, it didn't mean that it shouldn't happen.

The Frenchman's solutions, though, were disbanded when they made their way to the jet ski. Azalea's solution to swimwear was one that made the Clement heir avert his eyes for decency's sake, fully expecting Azalea to fashion something else, or do... something. When she spoke again suggesting that this would suffice, Jacques turned back towards the witch, and couldn't help but feel his breath hitch at the sight before him. "W-Well, that's one way to go about it." The Clement heir replied with a laugh, hoping beyond anything else that Azalea hadn't noticed the small stutter in his words. Holding out his hand for the white blouse she'd taken off so that he could tuck it away safely in his bag.

As he fastened the bag back in to place, Jacques moved out along the jetty to the jet ski. Jacques took up his place at the front, and just as he had with the bike, helped the older witch down on to the jet ski in front of him. Once Azalea was safely in place, Jacques turned the engine on and pulled the jet ski away from the jetty and out in to the sea. This time, there was no preamble to the speed, Azalea was quite clearly happy with the adrenaline-fuelled sports of the world, and he wasn't wrong as she laughed along with him as they hit some waves and gained air from time to time.

The duo rode for nearly an hour before they could see the island they had been heading towards, Jacques had passed the control of the jet ski to Azalea to have a go. His hands had gently wrapped around her waist, hands flat against the planes of her stomach in a manner he hoped was comfortable as they bounced over another wave.

"Just head straight at the beach," Jacques explained. "That'll stop the ski from bobbing away, just, cut the engine before we get beached." He explained, and within the next five minutes, the jet ski had done exactly that, Azalea's driving of the ski almost perfectly landing the jet ski as instructed. Jacques had stepped off the jet ski first, and then offered a hand to Azalea to assist her from the vehicle.

Before them, a jungle filled their view for as far as you could see, except for one pathway, which, if you followed it would show you to the cabin that had been erected in the trees. Jacques took it in, he knew that the person they were visiting liked to like remote, but this was quite something.

"Well, I hope this guy knows what he's talking about." Jacques commented, lightly joking for all they'd been through. The heat was making itself known once more, the cool sea breeze from the jet ski quickly dissipating now they'd come on to land. "Come on, if we get through this, we might just have time for a quick stop at one of their bars on the mainland." It was a suggestion he hadn't even thought about, but whilst here, why not try the local cuisine, or something?

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» To heal the wounds, from lovers past (JacZalea)