Loyalties | Barty Crouch Jr

Valentine's Day

February 14, 1978 - Tuesday

"What a sad day to be single," Thalia remarked, staring directly at Leonora as she joined her and Illyria for breakfast. Leonora briefly looked up from her plate, glaring at the girl. "Has your lack of a boyfriend put you in a bad mood, Nora?" she asked, a small pout on her face. "Because Illyria and I can easily find you a boyfriend for the day."

"I don't need a boyfriend for the day," Leonora scowled, chewing on a piece of bacon. "I'm perfectly fine being alone." Not entirely true.

"Whatever you say," Thalia shrugged, unconvinced, before turning her attention towards Illyria. "Have you received a gift from Evander yet?"

Illyria shook her head 'no,' putting on a fake grin. "Not yet, but I'm very excited to see what he's gotten me. I just wish I could see him face to face today. I'd love to go on a date." She changed her grin to a small frown, playing in with the lie. Leonora could easily tell how badly it pained the girl to say that.

Thalia only nodded along, easily falling for the girls lies. "I understand. I suppose I'm lucky Evan is still at Hogwarts, and I get to spend the day with him. I've actually been planning a small date for us tonight," she added in, smiling brightly from ear to ear.

"Wait a second," Leonora butted in, "why are you planning it? Don't you think it would be more romantic if Evan did?"

Thalia's smile instantly dropped as she scowled at the girl. "What would you know about any of that, Nora," she snapped harshly. "You've never had a boyfriend."

"I know enough to know that your 'fiancé' should probably be the one planning your date tonight and not you. I mean, it is Valentine's Day after all, and I would certainly love it if my fiancé planned our date instead of me."

Instead of getting furious like Leonora thought she would, Thalia frowned deeply, glancing over in the direction of where Evan was sitting. "For once, Nora, you're right," she huffed, shooting up from the table and storming over to the boy.

Leonora and Illyria watched in amusement as the girl began shouting at him, causing a scene so bad that professor Slughorn had to race over and intervene. Thalia stared daggers at their professor, looking as if she wanted to explode with so much built-up anger, but ultimately decided against it, opting to storm out of the great hall. Evan remained in his spot, face red and eyes wide, as his friends, who included Regulus and Barty, all laughed at the confrontation.

Leonora snickered as she turned her attention back to her breakfast. "So," she started, glancing towards Illyria, "are you and Francis doing anything tonight?"

Illyria blushed lightly, attempting to suppress a wide smile. "He told me he was planning something, but I'm not sure what."

"That's sweet," Leonora smiled, finishing up her pancakes as the sound of owl's screeching could be heard in the distance.

A small, rectangular, deep blue box was dropped above Illyria, making the girl reach her hands up in an attempt to catch it. The box landed in her palms, and letting out a sigh, she brought it down and closer to her face in order to inspect it.

"Is it from Evander?" Leonora asked curiously, though she assumed the answer to be yes.

Illyria nodded as she slowly lifted the lid and pulled out the small slip of parchment that rested on the top. "To my future wife," she read with a frown, "I wish I could see your beautiful face in person today, but unfortunately, that is not possible. I saw this necklace the other day and just knew I had to buy it for you. I really hope you'll love it. With love, Evander." Illyria stared at the note a moment longer before ripping it to shreds. "I don't even want to look at it."