The New Normal

[DORIAN HOWARD]

Dorian had felt pain in his arm most of the day. He tried to endure it, getting more and more frustrated as it came back instead of dying away. He looked at the prosthetic arm with resentment. What good was it, if it could not trick his brain into thinking the arm was still there? Normally, he wouldn't have any problem complaining about it, but he noticed that the court of people willing to hear him and take his side was thinning out. Even those who supported him wouldn't take it for as long as they used to. He needed to accept his situation. It had been his for over a year now.

His first instinct once back home was to call out Adele and ask her for the lotion he put on his elbow to soothe the pain a bit. But he held back. That was something else he would have to accept, that he couldn't count on her all the time. At first, they had so much to learn. They had to learn to trust each other again, to see if the two of them was still possible. He had to learn how to live with one arm. Losing his right arm when he was right-handed, that was the worst! It was a long process, one they were not done going through, but she apparently thought he didn't need her by his side all the time. She decided she wanted to be a nurse, at Hogwarts of all places. If it were him, he wouldn't have let her go. It was purely selfish on his part, he wanted to keep her close. If she truly wanted to work, she could have one so at the hospital, which was so much closer and easier to travel to. Instead, she chose some place far away, not as easily accessible.

Now that he was sitting at the kitchen table though, he didn't want to get up and fetch the cream. With a sigh of frustration, he lifted his shirt's sleeve and removed the prosthetic arm. How did it work exactly? He never truly know. He assumed a mix of craftsmanship and magic. He rubbed his skin, glaring at the arm on the table while doing so. In those moments, he felt powerless and that was what he hated the most out of the situation. He refused to be this vulnerable, he didn't even want to feel it in private. He wondered where Adele was for a moment, looking around in case just thinking of her would somehow make her appear. At least she would know better than to laugh or pity him.

[ADELE KOZLOV]

Adele never imagined she would have ended up back at Hogwarts. That wasn’t to say she hadn’t enjoyed herself- it could have been argued she’d had too much of a good time inside those stone walls, or sneaking out onto the grounds at night. The war had certainly had an impact on all of them; and while she had always envisioned herself in more of a solitary working environment, she’d been drawn back to the castle she’d always considered home. Maybe it was the sense of community and family there that she’d always longed for, or her protective instincts still in overdrive after the war. After years being rather selfish, and focused on modeling, it felt good to do something that was making a difference, even if it was a small one. It was a big step for the redhead, and who she used to be.



Her conversation with her father had been a shorter one, thanks to the three hour time difference. He’d had a surgery scheduled for the early morning, and now more than ever, Adele understood the importance of good sleep before working in medicine- even if their roles were very, very different. She supposed she was following in his footsteps, in her own way. “спокойной ночи папа” she said warmly before hanging up and leaving the study, figuring she should figure out dinner plans.



Adele was briefly startled when she entered the kitchen- she hadn’t heard Dorian come home, and while it had been a year, the sight of him without his prosthetic could still catch her off-guard. A frown briefly crossed her features when she realized how defeated he looked, even from the back. ”Hey you,” she greeted warmly, coming up behind him. Her arms snaked around his shoulders, gave them a quick squeeze, and came to rest closer to his collarbones as she pressed a kiss to his temple.

[DORIAN HOWARD]

Dorian was just as surprised as Adele to find her there. Of course, she had seen him in this state before, having been there every step of the way as he had to adjust to his new lifestyle, but that did not make it less embarrassing to him. He preferred whining in front of an audience for sure, he needed to get some validation, but he didn't want to be seen broken like this. Frustration was fine, vulnerability wasn't. He changed a lot in a short time, to the point he felt he aged a decade rather than only a few years, but that part of his upbringing remained. He could still easily put on a mask to fit in society and so the days when it was harder for him felt the worse.

For a moment, he pushed his complaints aside, enjoying the simple embrace Adele gave him. He took a deep breath and shoved his frustation deep down within him. Too often as he already let that side out in front of her as he tried to learn how to work with the prosthetic arm. "Hey you too," he first replied. Maybe was it not as warm, but that was due to the pain he felt at his elbow and nothing else.

"I didn't know you were here," he admitted. Why did she have to choose working at Hogwarts? But he couldn't chain down someone like Adele Kozlov. If she wanted to do it, he should accept that. And accept that he would spend a lot more time alone again.

[ADELE KOZLOV]

She frowned slightly at his so-called greeting, though she didn’t read too much into it. Instead, she placed another, slightly less-chaste kiss just below his ear. “I was on with my father,” she explained as she moved to sit with him, pulling his medication from her pocket. “He’s off to another conference soon, so I probably won’t hear from him ‘til next week.”

Wordlessly, she applied the cream to his skin. She figured it was best that way, to anticipate his needs, rather than forcing him to ask for help. As nice as it was to see him vulnerable with her from time to time, she did enjoy playing into his ego almost as much. Her fingers applied mild pressure. While the pain was still there, she knew there was a certain numbness in the scar tissue. She worked to massage it in, hoping that with enough time some of it would go away. She glanced up at him, watching his face to see if she needed to adjust her touch.

She wouldn’t say she had missed him. She didn’t need to. Instead, she brought his arm closer to her chest, subtly forcing the rest of him closer to her as well while her fingers continued to work. “I’m home for the night,” she offered up, watching again to gauge his reaction and see what kind of mood he was in.

[DORIAN HOWARD]

Adele had a way with him. Some time ago, he wouldn't have liked it, needing to keep the power play at work. But she came back to him at a tme when he was defeated and if the old Dorian sometimes crept back up again, he knew she had more of a power over him than he did over her.

He said nothing as she kissed him. He simply stayed like this, with her holding onto him and waited for her to explain what she had been doing. It was still weird to him, that she could stay in touch with her father. He was so far away from them. Dorian knew very little of muggle technologies. He had been fascinated by television when he first discovered, until he dealt with the racket the government was doing over this. If Adele wanted any of those things however, he didn't mind. His work might not be as prestigious as one would have expected of him back in the day, but he had a job. And his parents welcomed him back after the war, allowing him to tap in the family funds a bit. He didn't need to worry about money too much.

He let her massage his elbow, worked on the scar tissue to ease the pain. To this day, Dorian still felt uncomfortable at times to have her do that. It was not her technique, he had nothing to say against it. It was just the situation. Call it misplaced ego but he hated showing this much vulnerability. At the same time, he didn't know how much he would prefer it to be done by a stranger. Sure, he could dismiss that person whenever he'd feel like it, but that just meant showing this hateful side of his to more people. Still, he couldn't help but feel like he shouldn't reveal himself so much to her in that way.

Adele fored him to move closer to her and he leaved ever so slightly. Oh, she had a way with him! "That is devilish of you to say that to me when you're having me like that." He didn't sound like he was complaining though. Maybe was he not quite in the mood one would expect after such an offer yet. He sighed as he seemed to realise it as well. "If I can have you for the night, I think I'll start things slow." Dorian had no problem slowly building things up at times but it sounded more like he wanted to relax than get the tension rising until one couldn't hold it any longer. He let out another sigh. "Sorry. This arm has been a pain all day, can't say why."

Perhaps he should focus on her instead. He knew he was a rather selfish person. He was unapologetic about it. But in order to live with someone, he knew he had to make efforts. "You said you talked to your father? Are you planning to see him, some time after his conference?"

[ADELE KOZLOV]

While neither of them voiced it, Adele enjoyed the power dynamic they played with. She knew the power she held over him now, but she felt he knew by now she didn't abuse it- but damn, did it feel good sometimes. He would consider himself selfish, but she liked to give him whatever he wanted to take. She felt heady with desire at it, even if his words came with a bite. Even now, the man had a giant ego, and how could she ever deny the chance to stroke it?

"I might be a healer, but surely you know I'm not always an angel," Adele teased him, purposefully avoiding his gaze as she worked. While she had historically been more aloof and unfeeling, she liked the intimacy that healer work provided, though she especially liked to take her time with Dorian. She grinned as he mentioned starting slow, before apologizing. Her hands slowed but continued working, gliding over his skin. "Ever the gentleman," she teased quietly, not concerned with if he actually heard her. She'd dealt with him long enough to not be deterred by any of his frustration. She pulled his arm flush across her chest as she finally met his eyes again, "That's because it missed touching me, moya lyubov."

"Da. He was just getting ready for bed when I called. He's got a surgery first thing in the morning, and a flight to the States in the evening." She casually watched him, knowing he was trying to be nice with conversation but also likely just wanting to figure out her plans. "I might meet him for dinner while he's gone. Suprise him," she raised her brow and grinned, "He forgets how easy it is for wizards to travel. He'll fly all night and wake up and still not be there." She idly shook her head. As a child she'd always liked flying and the energy of airports, but now compared to apparition, portkeys, and floo, a 9+ hour flight felt absolutely exhausting. "You could join me," she added in jest, placing a kiss to his wrist.

[DORIAN HOWARD]

He supposed it had always been how they worked. The two of them always played on attraction to control others, including each other. They did that when they were little else but casual hookup partners and continued as they grew into more. Probably because neither of them really knew how else to act. Had anyone told him a woman would have him wrapped up around her finger, Dorian would have been outraged and he would have done everything he could do prove otherwise. He still disliked having it mentioned to him, but he knew how much he needed Adele. As hard it was could be for him to admit it, he did need her in his life. And having experienced what it was like to have the few people believing in you lose all faith in you, Dorian didn't want to go through that again. Still, in his mind, he thought he would have to show more control later on. He couldn't let her fully win this.

It must have been her experience as a healer, but she seemed less affected by the sight of his lost arm than he was. She was able to massage his skin and act as though it was nothing out of the ordinary. She may be faking it, putting on a brave face for him, but he was still impressed at how quickly she adapted to it and pushed him to do the same. He let out a soft groan as she teased him again. She knew how to help him deal with his situation. He did miss her touch. Having to learn to use his left hand for everything didn't help either, making him even more clumsy with gestures he had always made with confidence before. He leaned in closer to her. It felt more familiar that way. He wanted, if only for a moment, to forget what price he paid for them to be like this again.

He mindlessly listened to her talk about her father. He retained the most important details, he was out somewhere in the States apparently, she planned on visiting him real quick. He looked back at her. She might have said it in jest but he still stared at her to detect if there was not anything seirous hidden underneath. "You mean meet with him?" Should he be this surprised? It wasn't like she never met his parents before, plenty of times. Yet Dorian never really cared about meeting her father. He never thought about building a relationship with the man. Sure, he was her father, but he lived away, so far away from them. At times, he might as well not exist. For a second, Dorian also wondered about what it implied, to meet with him. Again, he should have thought of it a long time ago, when she met with his parents, but he did not. He wondered if that was not what her suggestion, albeit made in jest, meant.

[ADELE KOZLOV]

Their relationship was like a cat and mouse game, though you couldn't always tell who was who. If Adele was honest, she liked playing the prey just as much as being the predator, and yet, with Dorian, she found herself slipping back and forth between the two easily. The angel, and the devil. She sucked her bottom lip between her teeth at the sound she pulled from him, trying to fight back a smirk. She welcomed the closeness as her fingers continued their ministrations. She knew she should probably cast a diagnostic charm to check the scar tissue, his pain, and the site where the prosthetic attached, but she knew better than to ruin his mood with checking his vulnerabilities. For now it could wait- she'd prefer to focus on his other needs anyway.

She froze. Just for a moment, and she prayed it wasn't noticeable. It had slipped out so casually, it had felt so natural she hadn't even thought about it- but his stare made her want to panic. They both knew they had been slowly building something together, but was this the next step, or was it exposing an issue with the foundation? She'd met his parents before, but under such stressful conditions, she hadn't even really thought about it. She knew what kind of relationship he had with his parents, and how different it was from hers with her father. She never worried about ruining his relationship with his parents, but the stakes were higher with her father.

A noise fumbled out from her lips as she thought for a moment. She knew he might hate it, but deep down, she knew it was something she wanted- even if she hadn't thought much about it, and the suddenness had her nervous- a feeling she wasn't familiar or comfortable with. But she did want her father to know him, to know who had ended up holding the biggest piece of her heart. Maybe more importantly, she wanted Dorian to know she wasn't embarrassed, ashamed, or trying to hide him. She looked in his eyes as she started speaking, but nothing came out right away as she tried to tell what he was thinking. "Yeah..." she said softly. She bit her lip, trying to keep the small smile from her face as she voiced it, still fearing his reaction. "I know he'd love that... But only if you want to, of course."

[DORIAN HOWARD]

Dorian should have expected it. Adele was not like him, she had a good relationship with her father. It was kind of ironic. She would visit the man happily but otherwise didn't rely on him whereas Dorian wouldn't be against never talking to his parents but still partially depended on them to live. He knew he'd have to live up to their expectations if he remained too close of them. They would quickly go back to deciding huge aspects of his life without him having much leeway to oppose it. At least they approved of Adele. Not that it would have changed anything, really.

Would her father approve of him? Dorian never thought he'd ask himself this question, if he could be seen as a worthy partner for anyone. He thought it made sense, that regardless of his flaws his status would make up for it. That it did not matter because things were already decided anyway. But so much had changed now, and he found himself having to answer that.

He didn't quite like the pressure he felt as she stared right back at him. She appeared to hesitate at first but answered yes to him. At other times, he would have thought she was playing him to get what she wanted, and a part of him still wanted to claim that, but another, bigger, part knew it was not the case. She knew how to play him alright, but she wouldn't over something like that.

He also did not enjoy how he ended up looking away from her, sensing it could be viewed as a sign of defeat on his part. "I suppose I should have expected that," he admitted. How long has it been now? "I never thought that was something I would have to think about." Dorian did not realise how cruel it could be interpreted. He personally did not intend it that way. He took a deep breath, released an even deeper sigh. "But I suppose there are a lot of things happening as of late that I never thought of considering before."

Was this pleasing him? He couldn't say that it was. In truth, he was not all that curious about the man who raised the woman who mattered the most to him. But he was smart enough to understand what she meant. "What exacty does he know of me already?"

[ADELE KOZLOV]

Adele knew it was a big ask, a big step. If she'd really had any forethought, she would have played out the whole scenario differently, perhaps waited to mention it until he was in a better mood or she had him otherwise distracted. Though she hadn't had much time, she knew to prepare herself for an unideal reaction. Still, she rose an eyebrow as he looked away from her.

She swallowed hard, fighting off the urge to move in a panic and mentally cursed herself for being so flagrant with her words. She kept her face neutral as she let him process the idea, fighting the urge to frown at his harsh words. She knew he didn't get along with Delilah very well, but this was different. While he was largely absent her whole life with his work, he was kind, agreeable, and much more soft-spoken than her half-sister.

But Dorian couldn't exactly know all that. It's not like she talked about him in much detail. She knew how to hold Dorian's attention and chatter about her father didn't make the cut. Still, it stung to hear it voiced aloud. "What do you mean?" she asked softly, not sure which question she was wanting an answer for. She knew they were building a future, and that he saw something between them. She wasn't lacking confidence there before. But what else was happening that made him sound so bitterly introspective?

She took a deep breath and let go of his arm, instead coming to sit in his lap, a leg on either side of his hips. "Good things." she said simply, dragging her finger gently down to the point of his chin as she forced him to look at her.

Of course her father knew there was some bad for awhile, but not to any extent. Adele was never the type to open up to her father in much detail, and with him gone so often, he was largely absent when she went through the worst of it. Her father knew the basics- they went to school together, they grew closer over time- the other details were fuzzy, as Adele had done her best to shield him from the terror of the war as she knew he would've kept her away from it. He knew about Dorian's arm and, understandable so, was utterly fascinated by his injury, surgery, and prosthetic, but Adele would sour his mood with that news another time.

She dragged her fingers through his long locks, twirling her fingers in the curls toward the nape of his neck. "He knows you make me happy," she summarized- as that's what really mattered to the man.

[DORIAN HOWARD]

While Dorian knew Adele was more fragile than she would let people believe, he was not aware of the inner turmoil he put her through. He had his own debate with himself to deal with.

He knew he was being selfish, but Dorian always embraced the selfishness of his character. It was why he relied in part to his parents to live still while also not wanting to go back to work for the ministry. It was why he didn't always liked that she worked and would be away from him while also not wanting her around all the time. He had to work on certain aspects of it, he was aware. He had yet considered meeting the "in-laws" before though.

Adele spoke with a soft tone yet there was something, maybe in her tone itself or in her demeanor. Whatever it was, it forced Dorian to look back at her and pause for a moment, sensing he was entering a possibly dangerous zone. He still opted to being upfront. "Just that until not that long ago, my parents were the one managing every aspect of my life. Including work. And including who they thought acceptable for me to be around. Never had to bother what 'the parents' thought of me in that situation." He also often complained about it without doing much to remedy it before. Then he moved on without changing that mentality, only to realise now that he probably should have replaced it with something. It was the reason he was in this situation now.

He thought for a moment that he might have said something wrong but she moved closer to him. He moved only to offer her more space and used his remaining arm to looosely hold her.

He had a soft chuckle. He would have laughed more at such a line before. "Make me happy". But he realised that too was a concept he did not really care about until a few years ago. "Something else that would have been of little value with my parents. But I suppose your father is different. Which may not be a bad thing." Was he ready for that meeting? That would happen inevitably, if only because someday she would manage to have him put a ring on her finger and the man would have to be there for the ceremony. It was not like he was some very busy man who couldn't make the time for that meeting either. "I should hate you more for having such control over me," he let out, not sounding like he hated her at all, and leaning forward to capture her lips for a brief kiss.

[ADELE KOZLOV]

Adele had plenty of thoughts about Dorian’s parents and how they tried to micro-manage his life before, and how he’d rather lazily relied on it. It was, perhaps, the only unattractive thing about him. “They seemed to like me well enough.” Adele had never really stopped to think about what his parents might’ve actually thought about her- she’d been all-consumed with thoughts of Dorian and if he’d be okay, that meeting them was a bit of a blur. She supposed it was better that way. Having anything pre-planned would have made her overthink the whole situation. Still, if they had any complaints, they either hadn’t voiced them to Dorian, or he’d been smart enough not to relay them to her. She knew how Dorian felt about them though, which was perhaps why she didn’t seem to give much weight to being worried about them and their opinions.

She could almost, almost feel a little bad for Dorian, if there wasn’t a small seed of anger burning in her belly. It would be the opposite of when she'd met his family. This would be something pre-planned, something he could let himself overthink, seeing as he didn’t have anything else to do. Adele also held her father in high regard, even if she didn’t see or speak with him all that often. This meant something to her, and deep down she knew that made Dorian… scared? Nervous? Afraid he’d have to do something selfless after she’d proved this past year she’d do just about anything for him?

Her heart warmed a little hearing him chuckle, though she knew it wasn’t entirely genuine. “You do, moya lyubov.” Her slender fingers caressed his cheek. “You drive me crazy half the time, but you are where my heart is home.” Yes, she knew his family’s priorities, and how different they were from her father’s. “Of course, it’s not a bad thing. It makes it easier for you,” she teased.

She welcomed his kiss with a smile, though soon let out an exaggerated gasp. “Hate me more? More?” She laughed, letting go of any remaining tension she'd been feeling. Adele rolled her hips into him, a cheap attempt at shutting him up. She smirked, pulling him in for another kiss, “Darling I’m just getting started.”

[DORIAN HOWARD]

"What's not to like?" he replied. But he doubted his parents like Adele for the same reason he did. Dorian never paused to think what was his parents' opinion of her. Not even back when they were at Hogwarts. Did they only see her as his latest plaything he chose to keep for the summer? Did they even realise she was the same person? "You were there when I had to adapt to my new situation and they too struggled with it. I'm surprised they didn't try to marry me off to you before you could even say anything." Yes, he might not know what their opinion of her had been before, but he couldn't see them denying her now. Besides, so many families fell out of grace after the war. Standards had changed.

Where my heart is home. Dorian wasn't sure he would even have said things like that back when he was trying to seduce just about anyone. He probably would have cringed had a girl told him that too and have a good laugh at how naive she was afterwards. He didn't quite feel like laughing this time though. He would let her say things like that despite not being fully comfortable with them still if that meant she wouldn't lose her temper on him. Or worse, leave.

Normally, he would have so much confidence in this situation. He always thought he could smooth-talk anyone. Shouldn't it be easy to then have her father wrapped around his thumb? Yes, somehow, he felt nervous about it. "Does he know for... you know," He let his sentence trail off as his gaze moved towards his right arm, or where it used to be.

He groaned though as she curled up against him. She might call this a cheap attempt but it was also a most efficient one and they both knew it. He wanted to say she was now the one driving him crazy. He was almost certain that he did say that. But he probably was too busy kissing her and holding onto her to have muttered those words out loud.