Casillas Manor ~July 25, 2025~

"Oh they're good... a bit quiet really. I mean... I don't think all of these changes are doing any good for them. Will especially. He's been keeping to himself most of the time and he panics everytime anyone leaves the house."

By this time, they'd reached the dinning room. It was well lit with a large oval shaped table right at the centre of it. Already, there was food on the table.

"Take a seat and feel free to start already - I'll just get the chicken." Diana said making her way on to the kitchen.

Kiara looked down sadly at the mention on how Will was handleing erverything... first his parents die, then Darien leaves... She could understand why he did, he was mark for death by the purgers to. She thought about leaveing for the saftey of her family, but she couldn't leave the kids, plus it was her magic holding the protections around the house.

"The poor things..." she said quietly with a sigh, she wished she could have done more for Aramando and Calistas death, but the Purgers had managed to influence the court. The were dead the moment the assusations were made there was nothing she could do.

"Things are going well at our place, Tav is going to start his 5th year at Hogwarts this year, Edan is a bundle if energy and curiousity, always getting in to something, I can't turn my back for a moment with him. As for Rossa, she is turning into Daddy's little girl, she knows just how to wrap Ciaran around her little finger. kinda Cute actually, I love watching Ciaran melt when she talk to him" Kiara said a small smile on her face.

"What about you Viper? How is life?" she asked. It was hard to believe this was the same snarky young Potions mistress she met 8 years earlier. Marrying Sevastyan and now a mother of 3. From the look of it, Motherhood agreed with the Potion mistress.

Viper shrugged with a smile, adjusting her hold on Lynn. "Fascinatingly filled with crying, running, hiding, playing, and evidently food fights." she replied, raising an amused eyebrow as she noticed a small piece of Lara's favorite cereal on Lynn's hair. "All in all a life with children." she laughed softly, with mirth in her voice. While she had never imagined herself as a Mother, not to mention a Mother to three but in all honesty, she loved it. True, it was drastically different from being Head of a Potions Lab, but when it got right down to it, it was much more rewarding.

Using wandless and handless magic as she was occupied at the moment, Viper conjured a small potion and levitated it over to Diana before she entered the kitchen. "That should help relieve your symptoms. It was my lifeline... a couple of months ago." she explained in a subtle manner, casting a quick, downward glance at Lynn.

Diana was taken aback by the potion in front of her and the implication it held. It wasn't the fact that the potions mistress was wrong in her diagnostic - quite the opposite actually, Diana had these symptoms for almost two months already - but it was the fact that the Potions mistress found out. Diana was very careful not to tell anyone, she made sure. In fact the only people who did know were her, Nicolas, Helena and a trusted Healer in St. Mungos. She wasn't that obvious was she?

At a loss in what to say, Diana accepted the potion (the thought of denying the whole thing didn't even occur to her until she got the chicken out of the oven) and muttered a very soft, very confused, "Thanks." She then pushed the swinging doors open to the kitchen.

Kiara blinked at the meaning of the potion, did that mean Diana was pregnant? She wasn't all that sure how to react to it, as Diana didn't really confirm or deny the Idea. Then again Viper didn't say she was with child, just similar sympoms.

At any rate it did make sense, she supposed.

However if it was true her concern for Diana had just increased.

But for the moment she wouldn't say anything.

Diana walked into the kitchen in a rather troubled state, only subconsciously aware she was holding the potion that Viper had given her, she was rather surprised to see it in her hand when she was putting on cooking mittens. She blinked at the potion then looked back at the door leading to the dinning room. Should she go out and tell him? They'd already suspected...

Viper smirked inwardly in triumph. Actions spoke louder than words, proven even further by what had just taken place.

"She'll be alright." Viper said to Kiara, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of Lynn's head.

Diana burst out of the kitchen, roast chicken at hand. "Wait! I'm not..." She trailed off, unsure what to say.

Kiara raised here eye brow, "You're not?...." she asked. But then she didn't want to upset the younger women.

She sighed "You don't have to explain if you don't want to Diana"

"I..." Diana started but found she was not able to continue. What was she going to say? That she wasn't? Well these were the two most powerful witches Diana had ever known. It would have been pointless to lie to them... but to tell them the truth... Her throat tightened.


"Oh Merlin..." She sighed. "What you must think of me..."

Viper raised an eyebrow in suprise. "What are you talking about, Diana? Why would something like this alter what we think of you?" she asked in slight confusion, not understanding why Diana would react in this manner. After all, Viper herself had been two months pregnant when she and Sevastyan had married.

Why was Diana fretting?

Kiara looked at Diana in sympathy, "Now why would you be worried what we think of you Diana? Concern for you? yes, but nothing less off you" she said as she rose to face Diana.

Despite what Kiara and Viper said, Diana was still upset. "I married my cousin just after my husband left! Not even a month later!" Wow, she hadn't meat to blurt that out.

Viper blinked at the confession that had cadenced out of Diana's mouth. "Interesting... Well, love, I'm sure you did what you thought was best, given the circumstances..."

Marrying one's cousin wasn't quite a strange to Viper. If anything, given her pureblood fanatic upbringing, it was rather normal. In fact, now that she thought about it, had she any cousins still living, and if she had never met Sevastyan, chances were that might have been her future.

Immediately Viper banished these "What if" thoughts away. The last thing she wanted was to think of such oddities and go cross-eyed.

She turned back to Diana, reassuring her. "Look, nothing like that is going to alter our image of you. We've known you for quite a few years, and know the person you are. Nothing is going to change that."

Diana was grateful, more than grateful really to hear that. Some of the people she'd encountered were less than pleased with what had happened in the last few months. Not that she was happy about it either. In fact, it made her just down-right miserable. "I feel so..." She put the chicken down on the table. "Confused. So utterly confused... I don't know what to do... I feel as if I am suspended, unable to do anything, and to be honest with you, I don't feel like doing anything. I mean, last month, I remember being happy - " There was a very unpleasant lump in Diana's throat that she swallowed troublesomely.

"Then... then he leaves and I find out I'm pregnant."

Kiara listened to what Diana said, she couldn't imagine just how Diana felt or what she was going through. But she understood the situation Diana was in, as well as Nick. She didn't blame either of them, it would be in the best interests of the children in their custody and the unborn child that Diana was now carrying.

" Viper is right Diana, that is one thing you don't need to worry about... If you need anything don't hestate to ask alright?" she said sincerly.

Diana nodded, it seemed rather forced though.

"I don't know what to do." She said her voice tremblingly slightly. She took a breath but that didn't help much either. "He doesn't know..."

Kiara blinked, she hadn't told Nick yet? Had she told anyone before them?

She got up, sat beside Diana and put her hand on her shoulder.

"You will have to tell him sooner or later Diana, He will find out eventualy.....

"How could I tell him when I don't even know where to find him!" It would have been a scathing comment, had she not started to cry half of the way through.

Kiara looked in horror for a sec, "Oh! Diana I am so sorry, I thought you meant...." Kiara bit her tongue before she went any further. What a mess... her and her damn mouth.

"I am so sorry, please don't cry. Forgive me, I missunderstood you" she said Desperatly she didn't intend for that to happen.

That was Right Darien Vaight had gone, cause of the purger threat, leaving Diana alone.

No wonder Diana was distressed.

"I am so Sorry..."

"No..." Diana hiccuped. "None of it is your fault. You weren't the one you left..." She felt horrible for breaking down in front of the two of them. But she couldn't help it. Crying was one of her favorite past time now, it seemed.

Kiara looked at her sorrowfully for a moment before handing her a hankerchief, she wouldn't say anything on why Darien Vaight left, Diana was already upset enough as it was.

Moving her hand in a comforting motion on Diana's shoulder she sighed.

"I am just sorry I missunderstood you, if I had known...." she trailed off not wanting to upset Diana further.

"No," Diana sniffled. Taking the offered Hankerchief she attempted to lighten the mood. "I'm pregnant, I'm supposed to be emotional."

Kiara smiled softly, "Perhaps.. but I don't blame you, it is alot to take in, if you need any help don't hesitate to ask alright?"

"How far along are you? if you don't mind me asking" she asked, wondering perhaps she would need to find a different charms teacher.

"I'm ten weeks," Diana said hiccuping slightly. "Oh Kiara, I meant to tell you... I'm really honoured that you'd consider me as a Charms teacher again but... but I don't think I'll be able to come teach this year. I'm a right wreck, I don't know what's up and down most of the time, and I'm in this general state of depression."