If Love is a Game...

Chapter Twenty

Mundane and Snapping

"So... what's this that's so important that you just have to tell me now?" Krystyna asked calmly, jumping to sit on Lorena's bed. Lorena was pacing around her bedroom, her hands together behind her back. She was looking extremely nervous. "Lorena, hello, what were you going to tell me?"

Lorena stopped and stared at her. "Oh, oh, yeah, well--um--I figured something out last night when I was trying to sleep," she replied nervously. Krystyna awaited her to continue. "Well, um, you know how I said that I didn't like anyone?"

"Yeah, I remember that," Krystyna said slowly, wondering where she was going with this.

"Er... I've changed my mind about that," Lorena muttered anxiously.

"What--who is it?" Krystyna demanded loudly, taken completely by surprise by this. She had not been expecting Lorena to say this at all. She had a pretty good idea who it was, but wanted her to tell her and not to guess. She already had bad experiences from that. And Lorena was one of the most unpredictable people in the world, too. She seemed predictable, but just when you thought you knew her, she changed.

"You don't know?" Lorena asked, turning around to face her. Krystyna looked down at her shoes, as they just became extremely interesting.

"Well, I have an idea of who it might be," she muttered lowly. Lorena said nothing to her and started to pace again in the room. "Is it..."

"Yeah," Lorena replied without stopping to look at her.

"Oh." There was a pregnant silence in which Lorena stopped pacing and collapsed into the chair by a soft fire. Krystyna looked up and saw that Lorena had her face in her hands.

"Lorena, what's wrong?" Krystyna asked worriedly. When Lorena didn't answer her immediately with some defensive response, Krystyna became more concerned. "Lorena, are you okay?"

"They'll never accept him, you know," Lorena blurted, her voice muffled by her hands. Krystyna froze on the bed abruptly and stared at her four month younger friend. "They want me to marry that stupid Durmstrang prat. Honestly, Krystyna, I don't know how you do it. Really, I'm not sure I'm even brave enough to tell him how I feel, much less go out with him when I know my entire family will despise him."

"Lorena, none of them know so it doesn't really matter, now does it," Krystyna said softly, standing up and walking over to her. "They don't know him or your feelings for him."

"Malfoy knows," Lorena told her. Krystyna stopped in mid-pace. She just stared at her friend. "He saw us when we were in Honeydukes right after I gave him that chocolate James told me to give to him. He saw me and him... you know... snogging."

"But he probably doesn't know who the guy is though, right, so it's no harm done," Krystyna said optimistically, trying to shed some hope. Lorena didn't know what it was like to be in Krystyna's position, really. She was usually a good girl in her family's eyes that was slowly being corrupted. But Lorena shook her head sadly.

"Oh, no, he knows it's him, alright," Lorena replied, angrily. Then, she took a deep breath. "I just don't know if I'll be able to handle it." Krystyna smiled and bent down next to her friend in the chair. She waited in the silence.

"You can and I know it," Krystyna told her encouragingly. Lorena looked up at her through red eyes and smiled wistfully. She rubbed her eyes again and sighed.

"Girls, come to the formal living room!" Mrs. Malfoy's voice called loudly. Krystyna looked a little confused when she heard this. Weren't they going home now? Wasn't it all over now? Lorena, sensing her friend's confusion and seeing the look on her face, gave a sigh.

"Looks like it's tea time," Lorena mumbled grudgingly. Krystyna groaned inwardly. If there was one thing she disliked greatly, it was sipping on tea and talking with adults. It was so boring. She stood up straight and watched as Lorena got up from her chair and stretched. By the looks on her face, it looked as though she'd done this many times before. She reluctantly opened the door and they walked out, but not before Lorena extinguished the fire with her wand. Krystyna shut the door.

88

"... and so, I told her, 'That's no dog, it's my new purse!'" Everyone burst out into laughter at the end of Mrs. Hemmingway's story--with the exception of the seventeen year-olds and Andrew. They each were doing something different. Andrew was swirling his tea in his cup around with a small spoon; Lucius and Brandon were talking amongst themselves (thank the Lord); Krystyna was blowing on her tea, as it was way too hot for her to drink and scolded her tongue; all while Lorena gulped her tea down quickly and was now looking at the dregs of it.

Krystyna leaned over to her unnoticeably and whispered, "Sp, Lorena, what're you doing?"

Lorena was looking very interested in the boring dregs of her tea cup, but answered her nonetheless, except she did not look up at all, "Remember in our Third Year when we took Divination?" Krystyna nodded her head, again wondering where she was going with this. "I never thought I'd find tea dregs interesting again until now."

Krystyna stifled her laughter by biting her lip. She scooted closer to look in the cup. She'd never really liked Divination that much. Lorena had called it an easy A. That was easy for her to say; Lorena was a "practiced liar", as she so affectionately called it.

"But you don't have your Unfogging the Future book with you," Krystyna whispered doubtfully. "How are you supposed to know what something means?"

Lorena sniggered softly. "Strange enough, but I actually remember what most everything means to do with the tea leaves," she said with a light grin. "I don't know how, but I remember."

"What's it say?" Krystyna asked curiously, looking inside the cup to see a bunch of brown mundane and nothing more. She remembered being told that she didn't have the "aura" to be a Seer. However, she always thought it was hilarious when their professor said that Lorena might be a true Seer. Her gift, however, was to write a bunch of tragic bullock and turn it in--only after trying to figure things out; she always tried at first for a few times. Lorena turned the cup around.

"Well, that's a cross--I think--so that means... 'Trials and tribulations'--too bad--and that's a falcon over there--hopefully--so that means... I have a deadly enemy--Malfoy, right?" Lorena explained, turning her tea cup around and around. Krystyna stifled yet another snigger. Malfoy--Lorena's deadly enemy. She thought that part rather humorous. "So... that must be an acorn--over there, see it?--so that means... 'A windfall of unexpected gold'--excellent, I'm not sharing, so sorry--and what's that?--I think that's a small wolf..."

"What's that mean?" Krystyna asked, very puzzled. She had no idea how Lorena could remember all of this stuff so easily when she was on the blank. She had dropped out of Divination after her Fifth Year because she was no good in it.

"It means... 'Loneliness'--hm, bummer, but I have you so I don't know how I'll be lonely in the first place--and the last thing is... a candle?--right, okay, whatever--so that means... 'finding a lost love'--odd, but I'll take it I guess," Lorena sighed deeply, still tossing the cup around. She stopped and looked up at Krystyna, grinning. "So according these dregs, I'm gonna be lonely and suffering because of Malfoy, but I'll be rich and find a lost love. Hm, very strange, indeed but oh well. Hurry up and drink your tea so I can decipher your mundane."

Lorena's grin broadened as Krystyna drank her now cold tea, which she didn't like either. She drank until she was finished with it and sighed. She handed it over to Lorena, who must've been very bored to be looking at tea dregs.

"Hey, you also have a strange looking cross so that means more 'trials and tribulations'--sorry about that--and you got this thing that sort of looks like a sun which means... 'Great happiness'--alright--but you've got this thing that I think is a club--of some sort--which means... an attack--so sorry about that again--and here's a skull--ew, nasty little bugger--so that means... you've got danger in your path--this is not a happy cup," Lorena sighed, explaining it to Krystyna.

"What's a happy cup supposed to look like?" Krystyna asked her suddenly, stifling laughter.

"Bloody hell, if I know," Lorena replied coolly, almost making Krystyna laugh again. "Ooh, what's this...? No way, nah, it can't be. Actually, I think it is. Whoa, you've got some bad luck, Krystyna."

"What? What is it?" Krystyna asked, peering into the cup attentively. Lorena looked up at her and raised an eyebrow with a simper on her face.

"You've got the Grim," Lorena said lowly, as if impressed. Krystyna didn't know what that was and she didn't really much get what was so impressive with it. She raised her eyebrows questionably at her friend, who rolled her eyes. "You're gonna die."

"What?" Krystyna blurted softly, leaning away from her a little. Lorena chortled again and sighed, setting the cup down beside her old one.

"The Grim is the omen for death--you know, the giant, spectral dog that haunts the churchyards--you see one and that means you'll die," Lorena said spookily, as if telling a ghost story. Krystyna blanched a little at this and Lorena chortled more. "But don't worry; it's nothing to be afraid about. It's just a bunch of codswallop if you ask me. Of course, my Uncle Danny died after he saw one..."

"Wh--what?" Krystyna stammered fearfully, starting to get a little worried. Lorena rolled her eyes and smirked a little.

"Don't worry; as long as you haven't seen one--"

"But I've seen the Grim!" Krystyna hissed urgently, now more afraid than before. Lorena raised her eyebrows again and nodded her head a little, more impressed.

"Hm, that's different, but nothing to worry about," Lorena sighed. "I've heard so many people saw Grims, but they haven't died yet. Hey, you know, we all have to die sooner or later."

Although the words weren't that comforting, it did slow her heart down. Krystyna decided that she would rather change the subject to something more comfortable. In the end, they had started talking about the Quidditch World Cup. Immediately, Lorena had started talking about the Chudley Cannons, while Krystyna listened to her and pointed some things out. It wasn't that bad, being at the Malfoy Manor; it could've been worse. But, the worst was yet to come.

88

Finally, it was the ending of the night. Krystyna, though still not as happy as she would've liked to have been, was feeling as if the night could have been worse. She had not talked to Lucius that much and had spent a lot of time with Lorena. Andrew was looking excited to get back home, seeing as how he didn't much like the Malfoy's taste in decoration. Lorena was looking rather glum, but if she did feel that way, she hid it to herself. They all stood around the fireplace, ready to leave.

"The dinner was lovely, Selena," Mrs. Melanie said politely. "We'll have to have tea some other time again."

"Oh, that would be quite nice and thank you," Mrs. Malfoy replied lightly with a smile. Estella was primping her hair a bit while standing beside Marcus, who was shaking hands with Samuel.

"Well, see you at work in three days, eh?" Samuel said, grinning a little. Marcus smirked and nodded his head a little.

"Of course, of course, as always," Marcus sighed wearily. Marcus shook hands with William, who did not work the same job Samuel and Marcus did. He had a different job. "I hope your job in the Law Enforcement Department is going well."

"Oh, yeah, yeah, it's going"--William gave a large yawn, looking very tired--"it's going just great and I think I'll have that promotion soon enough."

Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Melanie were talking in hushed voices while Mr. Hemmingway was telling Brandon something very quietly. Lorena and Krystyna took a step away from everyone.

"Well, good-bye, Krystyna; and don't worry about that Grim, okay?" Lorena said quietly. Krystyna thought about it again and nodded her head. "I'm in for a long night and day tomorrow, but that's okay. It was fun while it lasted, huh. See you at Hogwarts?"

"Of course, I'll see you at Hogwarts, along with everybody else and your favourite guy," Krystyna teased with a grin. Lorena punched her lightly in the arm, her cheeks a shade of dark pink.

"Stop it," Lorena muttered embarrassedly, "before Malfoy hears and gets the idea that I like some guy, okay?" Krystyna shrugged her shoulders, but nodded her head obediently, still grinning.

"Come along, Andrew, Krystyna, we should be heading out now," Mr. Melanie called. Krystyna glared at her father and waved to Lorena unhappily. She was frowning again. Andrew quickly sprinted for the fireplace, but one quick look at his father and he stopped abruptly. There was silence as they all stared at each other in the rather awkward moment. Lorena rolled her eyes.

"Good bye, everyone," Lorena said loudly, waving to them. This seemed to give everyone the idea of what they should be doing. Everyone started saying good bye. Suddenly, Brandon wrapped his arms around a very shocked Lorena, who was forced to go through with it. A forced smile came upon her face and he grinned cheerfully. Krystyna was looking around when her eyes skimmed passed Lucius, who was looking at her intently. She ignored him easily. Then, a small push from her mother and she staggered out into the open in front of him.

"What?" Krystyna mouthed to Marlena, who grinned wickedly and raised her eyebrows, as if she should already know the answer. She was a little oblivious to it.

"They want you to kiss me good bye, Krystyna," Lucius whispered to her. Krystyna looked utterly shocked and revolted with the idea. She glanced at Lorena, who was looking equally horrified. She looked back at him.

"I can't kiss you!" Krystyna hissed quickly. "You're not my boyfriend!"

"I'll be glad to be your boyfriend, though," Lucius said quietly. She gave him another horrified look, but fought the strong urge to shake her head or slap him. "Just kiss me."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes, and you have no choice seeing as your parents and my parents are standing right here and that is what they're expecting," Lucius told her. Honestly, she had no choice because she wanted to see Sirius again and in order to do that, she had to not embarrass her parents. They were expecting her to get married to this guy, anyway. She shuddered at the thought.

"As if kissing you wasn't disgusting enough, this is going to be awkward," Krystyna muttered. "You know, they're just going to be standing there, watching us kiss. This is too strange. I'm not going through with this."

She crossed her arms across her chest. He smirked. "Fine then," Lucius replied. She raised her eyebrows up at him, not sure what to make of what he just said. He was giving up, this easily?

"What--?"

Krystyna was suddenly interrupted when Lucius pushed his lips against hers. Her immediate response was to jump back and then kick him or slap him or doing something to him, but he put his arm around her waist, which stopped her from doing so. He slowly pulled away, leaving Krystyna hanging there, evidently distressed with what had just happened. He grinned smugly and pocketed both of his hands.

"So... what did you think about that?" Lucius asked her quietly, grinning smugly.

"Oh my gosh, I can't believe that just happened," Krystyna muttered, completely taken aback. She just looked very surprised. "That just didn't happen--but it did just happen!"

"You didn't like it?" Lucius questioned, raising an eyebrow at her.

"I need soap--I need soap badly," Krystyna whispered, her hands shaking slightly. "I can't believe you just did that, you--you insensitive moron! This is so terrible; you just kissed me when I'm not even your girlfriend. You better be glad that Sirius wasn't standing right here!"

"You didn't like it?" Lucius repeated quickly, still gaping at her absorbedly.

"No, of course not, you twit!" Krystyna hissed furiously. "Okay, um... good night, Mal"--she glanced at her mother, who had not heard any of their hushed conversation--"good night, Lucius." He smirked arrogantly and she rolled her eyes.

"Good night, Krystyna," Lucius said cheerfully so that everyone could hear. "I'll see you when we get back at school."

"Pleasure," Krystyna replied stiffly. She practically bowed to him and scurried away back to Andrew's side where she looked at Lorena, who was looking awfully squeamish in Brandon's tight grip. Mr. Malfoy said something quick and quiet to Mr. Melanie and Marcus, who both nodded their heads. Lorena pulled herself out of Brandon's grip and walked away to put Lucius in between them.

Lorena eyed them all suspiciously and then sighed. She gave Krystyna a despairing look and waved. Krystyna gave her a wistful smile and waved back silently. Marlena grabbed some Floo Powder and disappeared in the green flames first, heading for home.

88

Krystyna was the last one to come back home through the Floo Powder. The green flames seemed to fit her mood perfectly, as she was flaming with fury. When she stepped out of the Floo Powder, Mrs. Melanie swooped over to her.

"You did it! You landed perfectly!" Mrs. Melanie exclaimed joyfully. Krystyna scowled at her and didn't even stop to tell her off; she just continued to head for the stairs. The reason she landed so well was because she was so angry, she just walked right out of the fire. "And that kiss..."

"It was so romantic," Marlena chirped, just to annoy her, a haughty grin on her face. "You two are the perfect match. You'll be a wonderful couple." That was it. She just sort of snapped. She rounded on them both, whipping out her wand.

"I--hate--you--all!" Krystyna shouted furiously, her wand in the air. Mrs. Melanie was taken off guard completely and took a step back, mainly out of fear. Marlena looked absolutely horrified. Samuel walked in from the kitchen and froze immediately. Andrew, who had been walking down the stairs, was completely shocked and tripped, missing a step and crashing down the stairs, though uninjured.

"Are you barking mad?!" Andrew spit out, staggering back up to his feet, gaping at his older sister stupidly. He took a hazardous step towards her. "Krystyna, just calm down, okay?"

"I hate you all!" Krystyna yelled heatedly, angry tears in her eyes, ignoring Andrew entirely. "You just want to ruin my life, don't you? Don't you?! I'm just a puppet for you, aren't I? You think you can toy around with my life--my life?! Do you honestly think that you can tell me who I'm supposed to like and marry? I'm not some kind of--some kind of toy, you know. I'm a living, breathing person, who can make her own decisions and has true emotions!"

"Krystyna, please..." Andrew groaned, not wanting her to get punished any more than she already was in. She was in over her head in punishment. But she ignored him still.

"And you better glad that I am nothing like you at all," Krystyna told them angrily, "because if I was like Samuel or you--mum--or dad, then you'd all already be hexed 'til next December! And you know what, you deserve it too!"

"Krystyna, please, stop it..." Andrew pleaded with her. She ignored him completely. Andrew was the only one who understood her and she was not going to get him involved in this. He was not going to get in trouble.

"For you information, I will not be marrying that bloody poof, Malfoy! I will not do whatever Samuel does! I will not act like some powder puff idiot like Marlena! And I will not shut up!" Krystyna screamed irately. "For your bloody information, I'm dating Sirius Black and I think I'd rather marry him instead!"

There was nothing but silence, shocked looks on everyone's faces. Krystyna was pink in the face and looking very livid with everyone. So this was how it felt to release all the anger and hate building up inside for so long. This was how it felt to be... relieved. This was why Lorena was extremely calm after she would scream and shout at Malfoy or somebody else. She felt almost hollow, but it was a satisfactory kind of empty feeling. She glared at them all and traipsed up the stairs for her room. Everyone heard the door slam shut and locked with her wand. There was total silence. Catherine walked in from the kitchen.

"Oh, dear..." she whispered. Andrew was standing still with his hand outreached where Krystyna had once been, looking extremely worried and shocked. He closed his mouth and dropped his hand. Samuel had his eyebrows raised and Marlena was looking offended. William gulped and looked at everyone in the room apprehensively. Mrs. Melanie was taking deep breaths with her hand pressed against her heart. A furious look flittered across Mr. Melanie's face.

"I think..." Andrew said faintly, looking down at the ground nervously. "I think I'll go to bed now... Good night." He slowly walked up the stairs and went into his room quietly. William ruffled his very messy sandy blond hair and sighed.

"It was all too much..." Catherine murmured, shaking her head. Samuel glanced at her, ready to ask her a question when she leaned against the wall quickly, trying to take deep breaths. He caught her quickly and looked at her nervously. "Just a kick, Samuel; calm down."

But no one would be able to calm Krystyna down, who was now in a furious state, alone in her bedroom with no one to understand her. No one knew what it felt like to be in that world and to just snap at your family. She didn't yell at Andrew, she couldn't possibly do such a thing, but she wondered if he had caught that. She hoped he did as she huddled herself on her bed, sobbing softly.