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Title: Sweet
Date/Challenge: 18 – deadly virtues at![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
30_hath
Character/Pairing: Susan Bones
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 834
“You have such a sweet girl,” a strange smelling woman once told Susan’s mother at a Ministry of Magic function both had been dragged to – one out of familial obligation and the other because she’d been promised ice cream if she kept quiet.
“Thank you,” Mrs. Bones had answered, smiling back in that stiffed lipped way that she used when she was lying. “Her father and I are so very proud of her.”
It was a lie, of course. Susan didn’t understand that until many years later when ice cream stopped getting her to follow the path her parents wished her to travel down. “Sweet” became the last thing that Susan wanted to be.
“Young lady, if I hear any more lip out of you…”
“What, Father? You’ll backhand me? Will that make everything all right? Will that whip me into shape?”
What was the man supposed to do? He had an image to uphold and a fifteen year old daughter who was no longer malleable. “Girls will be girls,” his sister was fond of saying with a knowing smirk. He didn’t particularly want his daughter to grow up to be like her, after all. The woman was too independent for her own good.
“Mother, I’ve decided I’m not coming home next summer. Michael has asked me to stay with him.” It was a lie, of course, but it still worked like a dream. They gasped in horror, declaring they didn’t know what they were going to do with this daughter who flaunted societal rules without a care in the world.
Their offer was just too good to refuse, she decided at the last moment. A summer with Aunt Amelia might prove to be interesting. She knew her parents were hoping she’d lose some of this devil-may-care attitude that seemed to seep through her blood like an age-old curse. If they wanted her cured, she’d find something to change this summer to be able to flaunt back at them. Maybe she’d get a tattoo like that one that Aunt Amelia wore. Of course, the woman would tell her she had to earn a marking like that, so since she wasn’t an Auror and never wanted to be one (unless her parents pushed and then she told them stories of how she longed to be one like her favorite aunt) she’d have to find a new rebellion. Something truly disastrous to the dreams that had been put into place for her.
“Young lady, you will be at the funeral or I’ll-“
“I said no. I meant no.” There was no smirk and this was no declaration of independence. Susan was so tired of putting on a brave front. If she had been asleep in the spare room instead of out, kissing Michael in the apple orchard, she would never lived to see her parent’s look of horror when she flat out refused to be part of the festivities of her aunt’s death. The thought kept her up at night. There were no more dreams. Nothing but the realization that she had lulled her aunt into a sense of security that got her killed. She had played the sweet niece to perfection. But no more. It had been a game, before. Tricking her parents was the last thing she wanted to do now. Let them see the real her once again.
For a moment, she expected her mother to tell her she could have a dish of ice cream if she came quietly. In this state of mind, Susan wondered if she might have accepted, just to be back in that time of innocence.
“Fine. Stay at home but we’re not giving anyone excuses for why you aren’t honoring your aunt.”
It was a low blow. There was only one way she could honor her aunt but there was no way she could avenge the death. She wasn’t strong enough. The Aurors would never accept her application, even with her last name and reputation. There was no way she could do something this important alone. Or could she…
“Isn’t your fiancée just the sweetest thing,” the dark-haired woman cooed.
Forgive me, Mother. You never knew you were buying me this dress for an occasion like this. Forgive me, Father. Your ideal man never had death in his eyes and the dark lines of a snake emblazoned on his forearm. Forgive me, Michael. I wish I could explain why I seemed to walk away from you without a backward glance. Forgive me…
“Thank you, ma’am,” Susan responded with her shyest smile. She’d been performing this role since birth. Surely, as a disguise, it held up even under the sharpest scrutiny. So far, she was the bell of the ball and even the ferret-eyed boy beside her saw only what she wanted him to see. “Sweet” was the only thing Susan knew how to do really well. If it was the last thing she did, she’d make it count for something. Her aunt would be avenged after all.
Date/Challenge: 18 – deadly virtues at
30_hathCharacter/Pairing: Susan Bones
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 834
“You have such a sweet girl,” a strange smelling woman once told Susan’s mother at a Ministry of Magic function both had been dragged to – one out of familial obligation and the other because she’d been promised ice cream if she kept quiet.
“Thank you,” Mrs. Bones had answered, smiling back in that stiffed lipped way that she used when she was lying. “Her father and I are so very proud of her.”
It was a lie, of course. Susan didn’t understand that until many years later when ice cream stopped getting her to follow the path her parents wished her to travel down. “Sweet” became the last thing that Susan wanted to be.
“Young lady, if I hear any more lip out of you…”
“What, Father? You’ll backhand me? Will that make everything all right? Will that whip me into shape?”
What was the man supposed to do? He had an image to uphold and a fifteen year old daughter who was no longer malleable. “Girls will be girls,” his sister was fond of saying with a knowing smirk. He didn’t particularly want his daughter to grow up to be like her, after all. The woman was too independent for her own good.
“Mother, I’ve decided I’m not coming home next summer. Michael has asked me to stay with him.” It was a lie, of course, but it still worked like a dream. They gasped in horror, declaring they didn’t know what they were going to do with this daughter who flaunted societal rules without a care in the world.
Their offer was just too good to refuse, she decided at the last moment. A summer with Aunt Amelia might prove to be interesting. She knew her parents were hoping she’d lose some of this devil-may-care attitude that seemed to seep through her blood like an age-old curse. If they wanted her cured, she’d find something to change this summer to be able to flaunt back at them. Maybe she’d get a tattoo like that one that Aunt Amelia wore. Of course, the woman would tell her she had to earn a marking like that, so since she wasn’t an Auror and never wanted to be one (unless her parents pushed and then she told them stories of how she longed to be one like her favorite aunt) she’d have to find a new rebellion. Something truly disastrous to the dreams that had been put into place for her.
“Young lady, you will be at the funeral or I’ll-“
“I said no. I meant no.” There was no smirk and this was no declaration of independence. Susan was so tired of putting on a brave front. If she had been asleep in the spare room instead of out, kissing Michael in the apple orchard, she would never lived to see her parent’s look of horror when she flat out refused to be part of the festivities of her aunt’s death. The thought kept her up at night. There were no more dreams. Nothing but the realization that she had lulled her aunt into a sense of security that got her killed. She had played the sweet niece to perfection. But no more. It had been a game, before. Tricking her parents was the last thing she wanted to do now. Let them see the real her once again.
For a moment, she expected her mother to tell her she could have a dish of ice cream if she came quietly. In this state of mind, Susan wondered if she might have accepted, just to be back in that time of innocence.
“Fine. Stay at home but we’re not giving anyone excuses for why you aren’t honoring your aunt.”
It was a low blow. There was only one way she could honor her aunt but there was no way she could avenge the death. She wasn’t strong enough. The Aurors would never accept her application, even with her last name and reputation. There was no way she could do something this important alone. Or could she…
“Isn’t your fiancée just the sweetest thing,” the dark-haired woman cooed.
Forgive me, Mother. You never knew you were buying me this dress for an occasion like this. Forgive me, Father. Your ideal man never had death in his eyes and the dark lines of a snake emblazoned on his forearm. Forgive me, Michael. I wish I could explain why I seemed to walk away from you without a backward glance. Forgive me…
“Thank you, ma’am,” Susan responded with her shyest smile. She’d been performing this role since birth. Surely, as a disguise, it held up even under the sharpest scrutiny. So far, she was the bell of the ball and even the ferret-eyed boy beside her saw only what she wanted him to see. “Sweet” was the only thing Susan knew how to do really well. If it was the last thing she did, she’d make it count for something. Her aunt would be avenged after all.
