``what i want

[Gideon Prewett]

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It wasn’t about sex, and Gideon would swear that until he was blue in the face. Or the balls, as the case may be.

Still, it wasn’t about sex. Honestly, he didn’t want to get into Jezebel’s knickers. He liked her, and he wanted to get close to her. And sure, he wanted to be intimate, but what that really meant was that he wanted to be able to hold her hand and kiss her and… well, it was embarrassing for a bloke to admit that, but that was really all he wanted. He had no urge to have sex with her right now – though he had to admit to being worried that maybe she wanted to sleep with him, especially after their most-recent note. And, you know, maybe if they were both ready for it, he’d be up for it. Except Jezebel most definitely wasn’t ready.

Jezebel believed in storks. Which in itself wasn’t a problem, since storks were obviously real creatures, but she believed that they carried babies to couples. And she believed that they were summoned by kissing. So even though Gideon was dating her and had been for… well, months now… he was afraid to kiss her, much less anything else. For one thing, he wanted her to feel comfortable in their relationship, and how could she feel comfortable when she would anxiously await the arrival of a stork and baby after each kiss? She had to know the truth about how babies actually came, and she had to believe it. If she didn’t, they wouldn’t progress at all in their relationship.

Worse even, their relationship would end.

It would have to, Gideon thought. If Jezebel couldn’t believe the truth about storks and sex and stuff, Gideon couldn’t have a functioning and happy relationship with her. She would feel like he was lying to her, and he would feel like he was taking advantage of her innocence. In the end, they just wouldn’t be able to trust each other. If Gideon knew anything at all, it was that you couldn’t be in a relationship with a person you didn’t really trust.

Still, it wasn’t about the sex. Really.

Valentine’s Day had come, and since it was supposed to be the most romantic day of the year, Gideon knew that he had to do something special for Jezebel. The problem was that he’d never had a girlfriend on this day before, so he didn’t even know where to start. Worse, he couldn’t even ask any of his girl-space-friends for help. Emmeline was his ex, so that was awkward, even though she had her own boyfriend. He still couldn’t look Kiki in the eye after their drunken tryst. And asking Gabby… he didn’t know why, but it felt wrong to do that. It wasn’t because she was ‘single’, since he figured Jayden would probably do something nice for her even though they weren’t really dating. It was like there was a line with Gabby, and certain things would be crossing it. It wasn’t like he’d hurt her feelings – he thought – and if anything, she might even get excited about the prospect of helping him. Still, he couldn’t bring himself to ask Gabby, his closest friend in the world who also happened to be a girl, for advice on how to make Valentine’s Day romantic for his girlfriend. He couldn’t explain it, but it just felt wrong. He had, however, made the mistake of asking Chace, who’d bobbed his eyebrows up and down and said “Well—” with a smirk before Gideon cut him off and told him to forget it.

It was hard to have a girlfriend, Gideon had concluded. Jezebel was easy enough to get along with, and so was Emme, before they split up. But now there was the pressure of constantly trying to impress her, to make her feel like dating Gideon Prewett was worth it and that she was lucky to have him. Because… really, what was so great about Gideon compared to other richer blokes? He couldn’t buy Jezebel any nice gifts or take her out to a nice meal or anything. No, he had to settle for taking her down to the kitchens and then flying, again, and hope that she liked it as much this time as she had the last time. He supposed it wasn’t all his fault, though. Hogwarts was so isolated and Hogsmeade so small, and access to it so restricted, that having proper dates with your girlfriend required some creativity. Gideon was afraid he didn’t quite have that, but he didn’t have the money to spend on her, so sometimes he had to just… recycle old tricks that had worked in the past. Flying had made Jezebel happy, so he’d take her out again tonight after dinner.

Lucky for him, the kitchens were quite close to Hufflepuff common room, so setting up the date was easy. He’d borrowed a few cushions from the sofas as makeshift seats around a (borrowed) blanket, since there weren’t tables in there, and had asked a handful of house elves if they’d mind making a special meal for two people tonight, whatever they asked for. One elf had been a bit disgruntled, but the other two nodded eagerly. It wasn’t too bad tonight, since a lot of students were on a special Hogsmeade Blind Date trip (which Gideon thought wasn’t fair; he would have preferred to take Jezebel to eat in Hogsmeade on Valentine’s Day too, but only single people were allowed to go) so they weren’t required to make as much food as on a regular night. Besides, he and Jezebel were eating early, not at scheduled dinner time. It’d be easier that way.

His settings in place, he thanked the house elves for letting him bring a date down and left so that he could go get her. Thankfully he didn’t have to go all the way to Gryffindor, since he’d asked her to meet him in the Great Hall. At least, he thought he had. Maybe it was in the Entrance Hall. Or by the staircase. The staircase made the most sense, so he went over there, nodding at some students he knew while keeping his eyes peeled for Jezebel and hoping she’d show up soon.

And hoping she knew the truth about storks now, too.

[jezebel]

graphics coming later

If there was one thing that Jezebel hated above all else (except for prissy, stuck-up, perfect princesses, maybe), it was being lied to. And to know that her own flesh and blood had lied to her? Well, suffice it to say that the letter she received from her father was, in simple terms, absolutely shocking. But simple terms couldn't be used here. Jezebel didn't use simple terms. This was more than just shocking. This was horrible. It was mortifying. It was enraging. This was betrayal and deceit and lies all lumped into one big ball of resentment that suddenly represented her entire childhood. She suddenly found herself questioning everything her parents had ever told her, and if that wasn't dangerous, she didn't know what was. But let's back track here a little and explain: after their conversation a few days ago, Jezebel had decided to take Gideon's advice and write a letter to her mum, demanding an explanation as to exactly why everyone seemed to have different beliefs from her and if they were right and she was wrong, or if she was right and all of them were wrong. And then she'd waited. The days passed by and she anxiously awaited every morning for the daily post, but nothing - until this morning. She recognised her father's tawny owl at once and she sat up straighter, bouncing impatiently in her seat and practically snatching the envelope out of the owl's beak, ignoring him when he ruffled his wings importantly. Looking extremely huffy (if an owl could look huffy), Albert took off with an indignant hoot. Jezebel was too busy ripping open the envelope to notice and she took out the letter with shaky hands, confused as to why her father was writing to her since she'd addressed her mother. It simply served to worry her even more, really. Out of pure instinct, she left the Great Hall, deciding she needed to be alone to read this.

Dear Jezebel,
I would like to start off this letter by extending my sincerest apologies. It was not my intention what-so-ever for you to continue believing the, ah...story that your mother told you when you were younger. I honestly didn't expect you to hold onto it for so long, since normally one let's it go once they're older. But I suppose your mother wanted it this way. Which reminds me - she hasn't seen your letter. I accidentally opened it, found out it was from you and decided to read it. I hope you're not too upset, but it's better this way anyway. I cannot let her continue keeping you in the dark. You have to understand, Jezebel, the only reason why I'm only telling you this now and not years ago is because you're my baby girl, and I...I suppose I was avoiding it and hoping your mother would finally come to her senses. But since she apparently hasn't, I suppose it's up to me to do it. And I wish I didn't have to do this in a letter, but since the next time I see you is during the summer holidays...I figure you needed to know as soon as possible.

Everything your friends have been telling you - Imogen, I'm supposing? - about sexual intercourse...it's true. Babies don't actually come in storks. I'm...

The rest of his words became a blur and she realised with a start it was because her eyes had filled with tears. She blinked rapidly and then aggressively wiped her eyes with her arm, refusing to believe that they were tears of grief. They were tears of rage. I was crying tears of rage. I could not believe what my parents had done to me. How my mother had kept me in the dark. I have been so stupid! I paced around the hallway, glad that I had decided to do this on my own. It would have been mortifying if I actually burst into tears in the middle of the Great Hall. Imogen was right. Gideon was right. Everyone was right. 'God, I feel so stupid!' I thought miserably and stormed towards the Gryffindor tower.

She didn't return to the Great Hall for breakfast, although by the time her first class had come around she'd calmed down significantly and was feeling well enough to go to classes. She didn't want anyone to notice anything was off, after all, especially since Gideon was in one or two of her classes and he might be able to guess what was wrong. By the end of the day, she'd managed to get her head on straight and start to accept that she had been wrong after all - and start to realise that, deep down, she knew she'd been wrong, but she'd just been in denial. Because, really, how could she believe babies actually came in storks? It was ridiculous and stupid and oh God no wonder people tended to laugh at her sometimes whenever she opened her mouth to speak, she must sound so stupid. She wondered if Gideon thought she was stupid. But no, he'd just...he'd sounded surprised when she told him her thought. Surprised and confused, but not judgemental and there definitely hadn't been any scorn on his face when he'd been writing to her - she'd checked to see. But thinking about Gideon reminded her about their date today, and she realised she'd probably have to tell him tonight. And then thank him for forcing her to see reason. If it weren't for him, she'd still think storks came in babies and oh Merlin she still couldn't believe that wasn't true anymore.

Not wanting to appear frumpy, Jezebel took half an hour longer getting ready that night, putting on her newest dress and slipping on a pair of black heels to match. She fussed around with her hair for fifteen minutes before she decided to have it wavy and half up and half down to keep it a little casual. She accessorized with a black choker and black bracelet, grabbed a small purse for her wand and then left the dormitory, feeling like she'd over dressed but not really caring. It was Valentine's day, and she was meeting her boyfriend for their first date as each others' Valentines, so this was important and she had to look really nice. Her heels clicked loudly with every step she took as she made her way down the stairs, pleased when a few male students did a double take and gaze at her appreciatively; it stroked her ego and made her feel more confident that Gideon would like the way she looked. As soon as she saw him, at the foot of the steps, thoughts of her parents' deceit fled from her mind - at least momentarily - and a wide smile stretched her lips. "Hi," she greeted breathlessly once she was in front of him, stepping off the staircase. "I hope you haven't been waiting too long,"

[/color] she added, a little worried since she didn't know if she was late or not - she hadn't checked the clock before she left.

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[Gideon Prewett]

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Gideon wished he had a pocket watch. He knew he’d get one in – holy cow, less than a year now – but it sure would have come in handy now. There was no clock in the Great Hall (where he decided he told her to meet him) and he had no idea if he was late or if she was or if he was early or if they were both on time. And right about now, Gideon was getting warm. He was in too many layers, he knew that now, and all the heat was coming up from the kitchens. It was bound to be even warmer in there, what with the house elves cooking for the rest of the school while Gideon and Jezebel enjoyed their private dinner. Maybe a private dinner in the kitchens wasn’t such a great idea, especially if they were flying afterward. Gideon gripped the front of his shirt between his fingers, shaking it out to cool himself down just a bit. His tongue was poking out and he was panting in an almost dog-like fashion, trying to rid himself of excess heat before Jezebel—

“Hi.”

Gideon snapped his eyes open and dropped his shirt, feeling his cheeks grow a tad warmer since he was just caught doing something rather embarrassing. “Oh, hi,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Er, no, you’re uh… you’re right on time.” He eyed her dress, deciding that he liked it a lot, even if it wasn’t good for flying. Eh, he’d lend her his cloak since he was overheating anyway. He smiled crookedly, his belly feeling as though it was hopping around inside him. “You look amazing,” he said, because she did. The dress fit her in all the right places, all the right curves – he needed to stop thinking about her curves. But they were very nice. But he needed to stop. “Red suits you.” He remembered then that he was supposed to be a gentleman, so he stepped forward and offered her his arm. “Er… sorry. If I knew you were wearing a dress, I would’ve met you up at Gryffindor. Stairs couldn’t have been easy. I’ve always wondered… well, not so much wondered, but kinda admired, I guess? How girls can do that stuff. You know, stairs and running and stuff when they wear high heels and dresses. I guess… Er… Well, that sounds weird. I mean, I don’t admire it… well, I do, sorta, because it can’t be easy, so…” Okay, now he was really making an arse of himself. Thinking quickly, Gideon leaned in and gave Jezebel a peck on the cheek. “You look great. Really beautiful.”

There. That wasn’t the worst fix in the world.

Holding her arm in his, Gideon led her down the steps from the Great Hall toward the kitchens. “Hufflepuff is further down that corridor,” he said, indicating the proper one, “And if we’d taken a left back there instead of a right, we could’ve gone to Slytherin, but I dunno where their entrance is. I just know it’s that way.” He didn’t know if Jezebel knew that or not; he didn’t think she had reason to know either of them, but maybe she had friends – oh yeah, wasn’t she friends with that Lyle bloke? He seemed to recall something… but he wasn’t completely sure, so he didn’t ask.

He led on, stopping at the portrait of the fruit and reaching forward to tickle the pear. The portrait swung open, and Gideon went first so that he could turn and help Jezebel through. “So these are the kitchens,” he said, though again, he wasn’t sure whether or not Jezebel had been in them before. It was hard to keep things straight, even when it was your girlfriend. “The house elves said they’ll make us something special, whatever we ask for.” He was already thinking of a T-bone steak with just a bit of pink on the inside and moist with sauces. His stomach growled and he chuckled, somewhat embarrassed. “So don’t think you have to have what everyone else is having. They said they’ll whip us up anything.” He led her over to his little makeshift picnic, then looked at it and frowned. He hadn’t counted on Jezebel wearing a dress when he’d set up the cushions around a blanket, but didn’t trust his magic enough to be able to levitate everything and keep it steady while they ate. “Sorry about the cushions, I didn’t know uh… I can try to make up something else while we wait for the food, if you want.”

He just wanted this night to be perfect for Jezebel, and right now, he was almost feeling like it wasn’t quite there yet.