The Rose Bushes

"No, she wasn't fond of drinking, in fact I don't believe I ever saw her drink anything besides water and tea." Horatio puffed thoughtfully on his pipe.

"What?" Viper asked, not sure of why Kiara seemed to be on the edge with her after her inquiry.

She nodded in acknowledgement of Horatio's reply as she refilled her goblet. "Was this an old girlfriend?" she asked in an easy tone as though she was inquiring about the weather.

After all her conversations with Eglantine and Kiara, she had gotten quite used to asking personal questions without any inhibitions.

"A girlfriend?" Horatio wrinkled his nose. Then it hit him with all the force of a hammer to his brain. Wrong pronoun...you idiot, he thought. "No, I'm afraid I never had a girlfriend. Back when I was a young man, which was a while ago, we did not date. Courting was the practice and it was followed by marriage."

Viper wrinkled her nose at the thought of marriage immediately following association between a man and a woman. She, still being fairly young, had been on quite a few days with a variety of men but would be damned if marriage followed any of them.

"How horrid." she shuddered as she sipped at her goblet as though to wash away the thought.

"You were married?" Kiara asked as she wasn't much older then Viper so that kind of costum was differnt to her as well.

Horatio shook his head, his face fairly neutral. "No, she eloped with another suitor. I wasn't interesting enough or romantic enough. And he was I suppose. Oh well, ancient history, eh?"

Kiara blinked, she found it hard to imagine, but oh well the past has passed.

"If you say so Horatio, though I can't imagine you being boring" Kiara said.

"Why thank you, Kiara." Horatio bowed. "But then again this is a good 80, 88 years later. I would hope that my character would have improved even if slightly over all those years."

Kiara blinked again, still astonished how much longer wizards lifespain was compaired to muggles.

"I am sure it has"

Viper scoffed, stifling her laugh by placing her hand over her mouth. No, Horatio wasn't boring at all...psych! she thought to herself with an amused smirk.

Horatio pulled a round device from his robe pocket and held it to his ear for a moment, before dropping it back into his robes.
"I am afraid I must finish out walk or at least my part in it, Kiara. It was a pleasure to spend time with you and wonderful to meet you, Professor Viper." He bowed slightly. He had a meeting with someone in Hogsmeade.

"So long." Viper waved. Under her breath she muttered. "Hope you don't stumble without your walking stick..."

Kiara rolled her eyes for what seemed to be the hundredth time since Viper arrived.

"Really Viper.... there is such a thing as saying to much"

Viper shrugged as she drained her goblet. "I speak my mind."

"I will attempt to do so, fair one." he smiled.

Viper nodded with a smirk. "I hope so. It would look odd indeed if two Professors were wheelchair-bound. There may be an investigation on Kiara!" Viper laughed.

Horatio chuckled. "No, that would not do. Good day." and he walked with long sure strides to vanish into the gardens. Soon he apparated Hogsmeade.

((after recieving note in Ancient Runes office))

Calista entered the rose bushes area of the gardens and glanced around.
Where was Armando?

Suddenly, out of no where, a dozen multicoloured butterflies appeared. They fluttered playfully around Calista. And seemed to say, "Follow us! Follow us! Follow the butterflies!"


((LOL I had to say it. I had to!))

((lol! ))

Calista frowned slightly then her face split into a smile.
She slowly approached the fluttering shapes, following them.

((To the garden of love? (LOL) ))

Kiara walked through the rose gardens huming May it be, the evening with Ciaran had her in high spirits, and for the first time in a while she had slept well the night before.

"Ah could it be love? hmm" she asked herself.

The words of her favorite song soon followed.

"Kiara! Kiara!! Oh! It's terrible! I need assistance!" Horatio shouted, running up to her, panting from the run.

Kiara was jerked out of her reive and she looked at Horatio in concern "What is wrong Horatio?" she asked.

"Eglantine she..." He breathed deeply to catch his breath. "Here I'll show you." he finally managed, removing a strand of memory from his temple with his wand. Without a pensieve, he murmured several phrases and created a pool of water for Kiara to watch the memory in.

Eglantine's German words along with her smile and the gentle touch to his cheek soon faded and he looked at Kiara like some hopeful pupil in need of guidance.

Kiara listened to the memory and her eyes widened "No way..." she waved her hand and played it over again.

"Ich glaube, ich liebe dich"

The look on her face and the tone of her voice all pointed to what she could partialy deipher.

Eglantine loved Horatio...

"I take you don't know German Horatio, and Eglantine knows you don't it?"