All Good Things

Chapter 22 - What Remains Unseen

Victoria

Garreth had practically dragged Tori from their office spaces down to one of the break rooms, filling his cup with coffee once he was there. He looked utterly exhausted, and Tori surmised it must be because of Adelaide and the baby, along with his son William. She was most definitely not eager to jump into parenthood before she'd gotten to spend as much time alone with Poppy as possible. She filled her own cup with the caffeinated drink and dropped down into one of the chairs, crossing one leg over the other.

"Alright, Gare. Tell me what happened the other night while we were out." Tori poured her cream, dropped some sugar in and began stirring.

"I'm not entirely one-hundred percent sure what was said to Poppy. But I do know that that woman that was there was Eliza Rosier." He drank his own coffee, stifling a yawn with the crook of his elbow.

"I gathered as much. But Addy and I only saw her as she departed. Was there something I missed?" She sipped her coffee, quirking one eyebrow up at the ginger on the other side of the table.

"Oh, you missed something alright." Garreth raised his olive eyes to meet hers. "Do you remember our old classmate Clarice?"

Tori scoffed, rolling her eyes and smirking. "Merlin, who doesn't remember Clarice? She was a menace."

Clarice Rosier had been a vicious girl with a mean streak ten miles long. Despite her insatiable thirst for cruelty, she had had all of the boys wrapped around her pretty fingers. Her beauty had likely been a large part of that, her appearance practically regal with long, dark locks that flowed behind her as she walked and eyes that could put even the most perfect sapphires to shame. She had broken so many hearts and left so much emotional and psychological damage in her wake that Tori had often wondered how she remained popular at the illustrious school.

"Now imagine her, but ten times worse. Imagine a Clarice that can get into your head just by turning on her charm." He had taken to the theatrics by now, propping one elbow up on the table and aiming a waving hand in her direction.

"Isn't that already what Clarice used to do?" Tori took another sip of her coffee, watching the man before her. He looked like he had stumbled upon the secret of a lifetime.

"Not like this she didn't. Tori, when I saw Eliza, it was like... I was willing to do even the most ridiculous acts just to get close to her. To have a chance at catching her eye." Garreth had propped his other hand up, bringing both to his face and dragging down it.

"That's concerning, Gare. Aren't you absolutely devoted to Addy?"

"Of course I am, Tori. If I were in my right mind, I'd never waver. But Eliza holds a kind of magic that can make even the most devoted man in existence change his tune. And if someone were truly desperate enough for love and affection, no matter their sexual identity, someone like Eliza would be able to control them." He held her gaze then, seeming desperate to get his point across.

"And that magic is..." Tori dragged the last word out, waving one hand in circles.

"Oh for Merlin's sake, woman. Have you not been listening to the information I've been giving you? Eliza is a half-veela. Most pureblood families are aware of any major families that may have any veela blood in them, and much like the Malfoys, it appears the Rosiers have it, too."

"Oh. Well, that's certainly not nearly as bad as I was expecting." Tori just continued sipping her coffee, catching the look of incredulity of Garreth's face over the rim of her cup.

"Oh? Oh? That's what you have to say about this? Tori, this is serious news. Eliza has the ability to stop you in your tracks if you're attracted to women." He was frantic now, slamming a hand down on the table.

"Garreth, let me make something perfectly clear." She set her cup down and met his gaze. "Even though we've been friends for six years, there are many, and I mean many, things you don't know about me. I'll be fine."

"Victoria, this is one fight I'd advise you to stay away from. Eliza is more than likely to have the upper hand."

"That's something for me to worry about."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She hadn't been expecting Poppy to be sitting in the windowsill when she arrived home. The tiny brunette lifted her head and turned it toward the floo flame, smiling softly.

"Welcome home, love. How was your day?" She looked tired, like she hadn't slept since Tori left.

"It was the same day in, day out of paperwork. Are you ready to stop by the post?" She dropped her bag, prepared to head off when she noticed Poppy's expression had dropped, her eyes having gone dark. "What wrong, Pop?"

"I already went by the post. I received a package." Poppy looked both positively fuming, and yet mentally drained at the same time. She was looking at the small table near the couch, her eyes locked on something.

Tori turned, eyeing the open box before lifting the lid. Inside was a stunning pile of white fabric, small crystalline gemstones covering the bodice. She pulled it out, holding it up with two fingers from each hand. The dress flowed downward, the ballgown-esque bottom flaring out from the waist. The sleeves were straight from the shoulder to the wrist, a small bunch of tule on each arm forming a covering for the hands. It was absolutely gorgeous, and yet insistently not Poppy.

"It was my wedding dress." Poppy's voice sounded cold, distant as she regarded the gown. "She sent it to me with a note. Told me that she was waiting for me, and where to find her when I changed my mind."

"Give me the note, Poppy." Tori tried to keep her voice level. The overprotective Gryffindor in her was screaming to take the fight to her. "I'll take Natty and-"

"She won't stop, Tori. We both know how the Rosier family is. Possessive. Cruel. Relentless. Once they have their sights set on something, they rarely back down." Poppy glowered up at her, her eyes filled with a seething hatred, the likes of which Tori had never seen in her outside of any discussions involving poachers. "I wanted to say something. To push her away. But something... some... underlying fear or... or dread rooted me to the spot, like she was literally, magically forcing me to stay put. I don't want you going to her to start a fight on my behalf."

"Don't let her get in your head, Poppy. You let me worry about her. She started a fight with me the minute she dared to try to break you, and the last thing I want is for you to have to try to fight her off on your own. I won't track her down if you insist, but if she shows up again, there will be consequences." Tori looked over at Poppy, searching those brown eyes for any sign of the inferno within that was slowly beginning to blaze out of control. "Now, if you'd like, we can go and burn this dress to smithereens out in the field. What do you say?"

"But it's a wedding dress." Poppy bunched her eyebrows up, flicking a hand at the garment Tori held aloft.

"Yes. A wedding dress your manipulative, spiteful, abusive ex bought for you. All the more reason to send it up in flames." Tori placed the dress back in the box and held out a hand to the small woman sitting in the window. "Come on, sweetheart. I promise you'll feel better if you destroy it. I don't want you staying inside driving yourself mad."

Poppy looked up at her, her lip quirking up on one side before taking Tori's hand, rising up to her feet.

"Exploding and burning things is a wonderful way to release some of that pent up rage. And if she happens to show up again, well..." Tori brought Poppy's hand to her lips, placing a soft kiss on her knuckles. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it, yeah?"

Author's Note: Please read before commenting!!

I have biiiig, badass plans for Poppy involving Eliza. Buuut we
definitely gotta let our girl Tori get some kind of enjoyment
out of this whole thing ;)
Also have a plan for Tori and Eliza that involved a lot of research
and will be relying heavily on theories rather than fact (just a heads
up for that)

Also, seriously, if you're still reading this, know that I love you.
Y'all and your support are the reason I love writing so much, and
I genuinely enjoy reading each and every one of your comments <3