A Game of Cat and Mouse

T H I R T Y

A couple of weeks later, Annie stood in front of the mirror by the door while she waited for Elio. She messed with her hair before fixing a spot of mascara that had smeared under her eye.

She looked different. Not a bad different but different nonetheless. More grown up. More like a woman. But perhaps that was just a reflection of how she felt. Because Annie certainly did feel different. Older, wiser, and a little more confident.

Her hair was curled in soft waves that seemed to take hours. Aria had put some sort of potion on it to make it sleek and shiny. Elio's mum had helped Annie get ready ever since James had dropped her off. From mascara to lipgloss to even giving her a pretty black dress, Aria had done it all. The fabric hugged her curves tightly, stopping much higher than James probably would have allowed if he were there. Every curve, every little nook inside of her, was visible in the bustier dress that pushed up her breasts until they looked like they were actually large. Part of Annie was wondering if they really had gotten bigger...

Now, Annie stared at herself wondering when she would wake up from this dream. Because the woman in the mirror didn't look like her. She looked beautiful and while Annie had always known she was pretty, she never thought of herself as beautiful.

Father's eyes... mother's nose... James's cheekbones... Annie recounted all of the similarities as her gaze swept over her body. And while she felt closer to her family now more than ever, she couldn't help but see herself in that mirror too. Someone entirely and utterly her.

"Don't worry, pet," Elio's mum said affectionately as she squeezed Annie's shoulders, mistaking her long silence for apprehension. "You look absolutely stunning. Elio is sure to faint whenever he gets his FAT ARSE DOWN HERE!"

"I'M COMING, ALRIGHT?" Elio shouted from the upstairs.

Annie giggled and Aria squeezed her tighter. "I always wanted a daughter. I adore Elio more than life itself and I would never dream of trying to replace Evelyn but... if your heart ever wants a second mummy, I hope you'll consider me. I've got many years' worth of spoiling to make up for."

Annie smiled and grabbed Mrs. Nott's hand. "That'd be great, Aria. Thank you."

Footsteps pounded from behind the two women. Elio bounded down the stairs, now dressed in a simple black t-shirt and some dark jeans. He shook out his shaggy, wet hair. "Elio!" Aria scolded. "You're dripping water everywhere. We own towels, you know?"

"I know but I thought we might all like to go for a swim today," Elio teased.

Aria went over to him and began to fix his hair, styling the messy waves so they looked less fresh out of the shower and more intentionally messy. But Annie wasn't paying attention to that. She was too busy focusing on where the cotton hugged his bulging arm muscles, on the water dripping down his tanned skin...

"You alright, topolina? You might want to take a picture," Elio said with a knowing grin, not taking his eyes off of his doting mother but clearly feeling Annie's gaze on him. Annie blushed but didn't take her eyes off of him. Merlin, she couldn't believe that he was her boyfriend.

Already a habit, her hand darted up to the necklace to fiddle with the A on the chain. It had become a nervous tic for her, though Annie had noticed she was able to hold conversations for longer if she was messing with it. Slowly but surely, she thought she might be able to overcome her shyness. With Elio's help, of course.

Her father had noticed the new jewelry as soon as he walked in the door. He had been gone for a couple of days—and was only home for a few hours before disappearing again, off to hunt whatever bad wizard he'd heard of. But he hadn't been there for thirty seconds before his eyes narrowed in on where she was sitting, playing with the chain while petting Perkins.