"Yes." She Grimaced, Her Tone Petulant And Angry And Not Nearly As Blasé As She Wanted To Be. Normally

location: madame malkins status: for @xantoninxdolohovx

Meeting up with Antonin was something she'd been excited about all week. The prospect of shopping and buying something new always thrilled her and having someone there complimenting her was a bonus. They had also discussed her finding new things for him, so this day would surely be fun for her. "We'll start looking for me and then we'll look for outfits for you as well. Perhaps we can find something that matches the ones I will be choosing for myself. Is there any color you particularly like?"

Serra had been off conversing and pretending to care what other witches were saying when Antonin grabbed her hand and they disapparated before she could come up with an excuse to say goodbye. Not that she cared about what they thought, but people talked. Especially because they were jealous of someone as gorgeous as her. It was only natural for them to be so. She looked around the unfamiliar area, confused to where he had swept her off to. Serra wanted to ask, but he had kissed her before she could utter a single syllable.

His kiss had consumed her, distracted her. There was something going on and she didn't know what it was. Perhaps he would tell her, perhaps he wouldn't. If it had nothing to do with her, she could do without knowing, but if it did thought she had a right to know. His words alarmed her, never liking to hear the word serious, but the compliments soothed her enough to listen to him. "What do you wish to tell me?"

Who: @serraborgin Where: Zafar x Evelyn Wedding/ Antonin's Flat There was no time, no explanation. He needed to get away and take her with him somewhere they could speak in private. He apparated the last place she had been and took Serra's hand before apparating again before she could protest. It had been enough time he thought, and he couldn't risk something worse happening. They appeared inside the safety of one of his flats. A nice quarter of London, tucked away. No one would notice their sudden appearance with the curtains drawn. Before any words could be exchanged he kissed her. The same fire in his eyes was there. He needed to be close to someone and he wasn't sure what light she would see him in once he was done talking. He stared at her hands clasped on her shoulders, breathing in slowly trying to get ahold of himself. "You don't know how long I wanted to do that, give you a proper snog, something too scandalous for that uptight wedding." He stroked her chin. "You are gorgeous. I don't deserve you. Can I speak with you, be serious for a moment. I need to tell you something that I didn't want anyone over hearing. I needed to be alone with just you, Serra."

"I care. I'd much rather receive a letter from an owl that looks well looked after, than some raggedy ugly one." She didn't see what seemed to hard for him to understand, it was completely logical to her. "First impressions carry a lot of weight Mr. Avery."

“Who the fuck would care what your owl looks like?” Clyde asked, baffled. Was everyone else really this vain, or was it just Serra? The Minister didn’t care what his owls looked like, but the Minister was also an idiot. Merlin did she actually have a point? “Wouldn’t the letter itself leave more of an impression?”

It was a scary thought for her, terrified her even, to consider breaking down the walls she had erected because of him. Giving the one person she had let hurt her in such a significant way the possibility to do so again. Still, it was easier to stay away from him when she didn't have to physically be in his presence. She could lie to herself and say she was not affected by him in the least. He was a man now, one that had gotten even more handsome with age. It was both a good thing and a bad thing that she still thought him to be extremely handsome, she was yet to decide which side she was leaning towards. "Well you better not give up. I do not plan on making anything easy for you." Serra informed him with a matter of fact tone. He liked the chase, she knew that. If she gave her heart fully now and he broke it again, she would be humiliated. "Do continue speaking about how beautiful I am, I will never tire of it." Serra was clearly pleased that he thought her beauty distracting, as was evident from her smile. Or at least she was trying to smile but something felt off. When he came closer to her she noticed that she started to feel quite dizzy all of a sudden, her skin tingling even where he didn't touch her. "I- I feel dizzy..." She wanted to say more but everything went black as she fainted right into his arms.

There were not enough words to describe how he felt around Serra in that moment. It felt like they were traveling back in time without moving at all. Malcolm had worked up years of how he would do things differently and not rely on his spontaneous and immature responses to their previous relationship. He had been nothing but a scared boy who thought he was bigger than the world. How naive he was to not see that Serra was the only one who mattered, who castrated the noises around them. That last year at school had bent him into a hellhound who only wanted to look after himself without weighing others' emotions. Now, he wasn't a boy, but a man with a tenured experience in giving Serra what she wants with lavish gifts from all over the world. They had a wedding to plan, and where he thought she would meet him with contempt, it felt like their story was given another chance; the greatest gift she could give back. "I will," Malcolm smiled. "And I doubt I will ever stop vying for your affections. You might get tired of me. I can only speak of my excitement for our futures and how your beauty is quite distracting. The other plans to prove my loyalty might have to wait when we leave, as I don't think it's appropriate here." Malcolm took a step closer, his hand meeting her hair that asked to be pushed behind her ear. As he was leaning down for a kiss, he paused only an inch away from her lips when he noticed something was wrong. "My love, are you alright?" Malcolm knew she arrived with the perfect shade of lipstick, but now they were nearly pale.

@alaraselwyn

"Well I am not going to say no to that. We need to take Willa with us as well." She scanned the crowd for her friend, making a mental note to tell her too. "I'm partial to dancing but I'll need to change before that, this dress is more of a show stopper not made for dancing."

“Something with less of our old stuffy relatives around,” Lydia joked after making sure none of said relatives could hear her. “I bet we could sneak out and go dancing if you’d like. Or roller skating! I’ve been learning and it’s wicked fun.”

Serra nodded her approval when he explained. "That is good. She is a woman of good taste, you are well off listening to her." There had been a moment in time she'd been jealous and disliked the blonde, but she had gotten over it. She actually quite liked her now.

"I will wear it. It's quite lovely. If it was ugly I would have no problem telling you so. I think you could handle my honest opinion." Perhaps it went against propriety, but as long as people did not listen in she was fine stretching the boundaries. "They think they know what's best. It is hard to tell them that they do not. "

“Leta made comments and observations.  I think that I have spent enough time with her to understand the basics of picking out something that won’t end up as an expensive paperweight at least.” Antonin never wore much jewelry himself.  A chain was just something that could be grabbed or used against you if a fight went on long enough or got too heated.  Fighting against Leta had told him that much too, but he didn’t need to bore Serra with that, especially not on her birthday. “Don’t worry I’m not the type to tell you to put it on, it’s yours now and you can do with it what you will.  At most if I see you wearing it some time I might be quietly delighted.”  He thought to his own parents.  “Yes parents are hard to defy at times no matter your age, at least on the important things.  They always find the way to make you want to defy them, and still regret it if you get your way, don’t they?”

status: for @fcrox (Leta) location: Madame Malkins

When she left London she'd been bored, a tad embarrassed but mostly bored. Things with Antonin ended amicably, with neither of their reputations catching strays. She felt lucky that this wasn't like the last time her relationship imploded. Definitely less humiliating. As the season was changing she wanted to commission a new dress at Madame Malkins, plus she wanted to go and see Leta as the other woman had played a role in the internship Serra had. While working at a shop didn't seem appealing to her, designing dresses and coming up with concepts was fun and she had enjoyed it more than she thought she would've. "Leta. I wanted to inquire about your workload in the coming weeks. Is there any way you could make the dress I am working on?"

status: for @rsrevan, @miraxselwyn location: borgin manor

Serra was in an excellent mood tonight, tipsy on attention and gifts, as well as several glasses of champagne. It was her birthday and she'd been showered with presents left and right. Her parents were being particularly generous this year, which while she noticed she didn't comment on. Perhaps they wanted to make sure she didn't have any wayward plans of following into her idiotic cousin's footsteps. As if. A cautionary tale more so than a role model she'd always been to Serra. Floating around in her pink dress she smiled when she spotted a familiar face. "Welcome. Have you had the champagne yet? It is quite delicious."

Serra swallowed, not wanting him to notice that she was more nervous than she was letting on. She had a carefully crafted reputation and appearance, she didn't want him to think she was some foolish girl with no experience. "I live with my parents. I do not want to live alone just yet, it seems like too much work and I do not like to work." Her words albeit honest, were meant to stall. "I do not think my parents would approve of that." They were traditionalists through and through. They would not allow her to stay out all night at a man's house either. If he had been her husband they would not interfere, but if he was her fiancé they might take less offense with it, but she doubted that even then they would approve.

Serra kissed him back, letting herself get distracted, relaxing into his touch if only for a moment before she pulled away. She did not want to give this up. She liked spending time with him but he was asking a lot of her. Perhaps more than she was capable of giving him. At least at this point.

Hearing the confirmation that there were indeed others bothered her and the glint of annoyance and jealousy was obvious when he spoke about it. While he had been seeing her he had been with others. It wasn't something she had ever had to deal with, the guys she'd been with had been interested in her and only her, basically worshipping the ground she walked on, begging for her attention. "The entire time you've been seeing me there were others?" Serra shook her head. It was incomprehensible to her. It bothered her more than his focus on the physical part of a relationship. "I do think this is where our journey ends."

He looked at her trying to get a read on her so undaunted.  She must have a goal even if it was him. This wasn’t a thing she could bluff though not really, at least for long did she realize that? He would make sure.  He grasped her tightly there was no space between them.  He held her squeezed her.  She was supple he held her close speaking slowly.  “Facts can still be asserted boldly.  To promise this so freely I would have you know what you’re getting yourself into.  Do you live at home?  I would have access to you, stay with you most nights if not all, there or here I don’t care, but your parents certainly might.” He moved grabbing her bottom a simple if signifying gesture.  If she shrunk from that he would know she was all talk. “I don’t care if I am your first or just your last until one or both of us are done, but if we are to be each other’s everything we must be at each other’s call.  I promised you romance, pampering, training, none of that will stop but there will be more.”  He kissed her again biting her lip, a small thing but something signifying the new eyes he saw her with. Was she truly his equal or just playing at it. “If you are making me choose and choose now. I want us both to be happy with the choice.  No regrets.  I’ll need time to break it to the others, some will be simpler than others.  You can always leave, but hot and heavy or not at all.  This is what I’m asking of you.  I will devour you and you will enjoy every moment of it.  See to it that you enjoy your prime and are enjoyed in turn.  If I’m to be satisfied with just you, you will see how insatiable I truly am.  Are you sure this is something you agree to Serra Borgin?” He teased at the small of her back and the slit of her dress as if he was just realizing how well she filled out her dress. “You are a delightful morsel Serra Borgin, and I would sample you, deeply, carnally.”  He traced his hand on her bare leg. “I would like a physical relationship. To consummate ours regularly, so there is no confusion in what I am asking you.”