Hideout turned Home?

[‡ Tierney Monet Harper ‡]

The heavy wooden front door swung open. A steep winding staircase lay to the right and straight ahead was a hallway. Two doors lay along the left wall and one more door stood alone at the very end of the corridor. The first door was a sliding set which was open to a den. As Tierney moved further in the second door revealed a library. She set her bags down and continued to the last door. Another staircase - this time heading down. She went down until she saw a kitchen and living room type area. Then she came back up with a small smile.

She felt like a little child. She was absolutely fascinated by the new home she and Landon had bought. It was only a rent for now, but... She loved it so much! She might just buy it in full later on. Racing up the stairs she opened all the doors and looked in. Bathroom, bedroom, bedroom, bathroom, another den, another bedroom. Another bathroom. She headed all the way up to the top of the stairs. They ended abruptly at a tiny little hallway tucked against the front wall of the house. The cieling was a little low over the stairs, but she doubted even Landon would have to duck. Anyone taller might though. Just a bit.

She walked into hallway and looked out the windows that allowed her to see the bright green grass and other homes in the area. She then turned and saw a door on the opposite wall. She pushed it open to find a whole floor dedicated to a bedroom and a bathroom. She figured it to be the master bedroom by the size. It was well lit and the size allowed for plenty of furniture and a fireplace. Tierney looked around and then with a start turned and walked out of the room, closing the door and heading back down. She was red in the face as she returned to the ground floor at a run and nearly slammed into the wall at the bottom.

"Whoops. I'll have to be careful with that." She grinned brightly and breathed deeply. It even smelled like a home to her. Pleasant, warm, happy. It'd smell better if it smelled of baking cookies or something. She'd have to get on that. "My only problem with it is that it, and the three wizarding homes beside it, are all hidden with a Fidelius Charm and various other anti-muggle spells. I would like a home I could just walk out of... but for now this is best." She sighed, but it was a content sigh. She had to think of Landon first. He didn't need his family finding them. He needed a safe place.

And Tierney had no problem thinking of him and those needs first. He meant everything to her. For all she knew he was all she had left! She would do whatever it took to keep him safe and protected. Anything at all. Lie, cheat, steal, and hide. If it weren't so important that they act normally she would suggest they even drop out of school, but then immediately they would be pointed at for having something to do with Chanel Williams' murder. They did. Landon had commited the murder and Tierney had cleaned up after him. Of course, if they could hide those facts - she sure as hell would. She would not let Landon pay for the insanity of his uncle.

Not her love. Not him.

[Landon Riley Rederick]

Taking a deep breath, Landon followed Tierney through the doorway and into the start of their new lives together. He was a little nervous as he walked in further because he wanted living with her to work more than anything. He needed it more than anything. It would be his saving grace. Living with Tierney would be a chance for Landon to escape the hell that he’d been living in for the past few weeks and an opportunity for them to bring their relationship to another level. After placing his bags and a box next to Tierney’s belongings he leaned against the wall waiting for her to come back down stairs. As excited as he was about their new home, he felt very worn and tired.

Naturally, after everything that had happened he hadn’t been sleeping very well. He stayed awake thinking about so many things. The feeling that he’d ruined Tierney’s life kept floating around in his head. He’d gotten her involved in a dangerous game. If he lost, she’d potentially go down with him. And he kept reliving the scene of Chanel’s death over and over again. He’d wake up feeling like he still had her blood on his hands, then run to the bathroom to be sick. He kept thinking about if he had gone through with the job the way his Uncle had wanted him to. And the fact that he had almost done it burned him inside. But he had panicked and killed her before he could bring her that kind of pain and torture.

He unconsciously scratched the new star that donned the inside of his forearm. It was small enough to leave room for more, not that he wanted anymore. The tattoo of the star was to symbolize the completion of his first job. Landon knew that his uncle was proud of him though he’d never express that kind of emotion. Landon had done “a great deed for the family,” Lenny had said. But Landon didn’t care about any of that. He was just glad that it was over and that he could move on with his life, at least, he hoped that he could. Needless to say, Lenny was not very happy when Landon told him that he would be leaving to live with Tierney. He didn’t tell him where he was going or anything like that. He just said that he needed to get away from them for a while. He loved his family, no doubt, but he couldn’t keep living like this, constantly looking over his shoulder. It would be the death of him.

Landon grinned as Tierney came back down the stairs. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back to him in a hug. “I wouldn’t care if we were living in cardboard box. Just as long as I’m with you I’m fine.” He was so excited about being there and about being happy together. His heart swelled at the idea of living happily ever after with her, as impossible as it sounded. Neither of their lives would be normal again. Landon would forever live in fear.

For some reason he felt as if the house was missing something. He felt as if there should be little children running around, but of course, it was way too early for anything like that. “What do you think about getting a little puppy or a kitten? It could be out own little family.”

OoC: blaaaaah

[‡ Tierney Monet Harper ‡]

You’re not alone, together we stand
I’ll be by your side, you know I’ll take your hand
When it gets cold, and it feels like the end
There’s no place to go, you know I won’t give in

As she was about to go and hug Landon he pulled her to him himself. She smiled at him softly and hugged him tightly. "I would be happy anywhere with you as well, Landon." She moved her arms to around his neck and kissed his lips quickly. "I'm here for you - always." She whispered softly, her smile stronger than it had been recently. She ran her fingers through his hair and over the side of his face gently.

“What do you think about getting a little puppy or a kitten? It could be our own little family."

Tierney laughed and nodded. "I'd love that. A kitten or a puppy... what about both?" She grinned fiercely and sighed as she rested her head on Landon's shoulder. She then pulled back and took his hands. "So are you hungry? Do you want to eat? Or would you prefer to unpack first? You can have first choice of rooms if you want..." She got a little quiet at the end, looking up the stairs briefly and then back to Landon. "You know what... how about this; you go unpack and relax while I go cook and when I'm done cooking I'll come get you."

She leaned up and kissed him full on the lips for a moment that was anything but brief and then went to her bags and pulled out a small brown pouch before heading downstairs to the kitchen. From the pouch she pulled out pots, pans, utensils, and all other forms of kitchen and dining ware one could think of. She hand to put them all away by hand, being unable to use magic outside of school yet. It was annoying, but it also gave her some time to think over what she had in the way of dry goods to make for Landon and herself.

She ended up settling for pasta in alfredo sauce. It wouldn't take very long and that was her only problem with it. Landon probably needed a fair amount of time to unpack and certainly needed a while to relax. He might have almost finished unpacking by the time she was done with the kitchenware, but pasta still didn't allow enough time for him to unwind. So Tierney took her time filling the pasta pot and then she set the stove to a low temperature so that the water would take longer to boil.

After she had everything set up she walked over to the living room type area adjacent to the kitchen and plopped down on the couch rug there with a sigh. They'd have to go furniture shopping too later... but how would they get the furniture there? It sucked to be underage for magic and be in a house that "didn't exist" as far as muggles were concerned. She sprawled out face down on the rug, arms stretched out to either side and feet kicking up and down rhythmically. "Stupid laws." She mumbled to herself, laying her cheek against the rug as her nose was starting to hurt being pressed against it.

Stupid Uncle Lenny...

((omg. that was such sh*t. sorry >.<))

[Landon Riley Rederick]

OoC: If I give Tierney actions in Landon’s dream, is it still considered god-moding? I hope not. Let me know if you don’t like it. I’ll change it.

The truth in Tierney’s words spoke volumes to him. He knew that no matter what she would always be by his side. At this point, most people would have left him on his own. He’d gotten in too deep. But Tierney was still there and he knew that she wasn’t going to abandon him. “I love you,” he said, expressing his gratitude by kissing her back. “Sure, we can get a puppy and a kitten.” The smile on her face warmed his cold heart.

Landon frowned because he didn’t want to let her go. “Okay…” Landon kissed her back again, fully enjoying it until his stomach growled. Pulling away, he frowned. He was a little hungry so he did as she said and went to get his things. He placed that bags and the box from the den on the stairs and went to grab the rest of his stuff outside. Landon made sure that he brought everything from his room at Hogwarts and his room at home with his family so that he wouldn’t have to go back unless it was absolutely necessary.

Grabbing as many things as he could at one time, he went to the floor with most of the bedrooms on it. They all were the same for the most part so he took the one that was farthest away from the staircase. The master bedroom would be nice, but this was practically Tierney’s house so she deserved to have it. Besides, he didn’t really need too much room. He placed his stuff on the floor and went to grab the rest of it. Once he came back upstairs he put the clothes that could be hung and placed them in the closet. Without more furniture, there wasn’t much else he could do. He grabbed a chair, the only piece of furniture in the room, and pulled it in front of the window. Landon sat down, putting his feet up on the window sill and closed his eyes. It had been a few days since he’d last slept and it was starting to catch up with him. Sometimes he’d even dread sleeping in fear of the things he might dream about, but he couldn’t keep his eyes from falling closed.

He was in a white room and there was blood everywhere. It was on his hands and bare torso, even his lips. Landon looked around frantically to find the source of the blood. He glanced down and realized the he was straddling the body of a lifeless girl. There was blood along the side of her face and tear stains on her cheeks. Her shirt was unbuttoned and he skirt was hiked up around her waist. He wracked his brain trying to understand the situation. There was a handprint the size of his own around her neck and her eyes and mouth were still open. “Oh my God.” The list possibilities of what happened were starting to narrow and the idea was making him sick.

“Landon?!” He turned his head to see who was calling out to him. “Tierney, it’s not what it looks like!” He stood up and ran toward her. “What? Not what it looks like? Don’t touch me!!” She slapped his hand away when he tried to reach out to her. He looked around and suddenly the scene had changed. Now he was in the house and it had been beautifully furnished. Tierney was standing the corridor with a bag on her shoulder.

“But Love—“

“Don’t call me that. I can’t do this anymore Landon. You’re ruining my life. I can’t even look at you anymore.” This was his greatest fear; that Tierney wouldn’t love him anymore. “Please don’t go.” He fell to his knees and begged her, wrapping his arms around he legs. “I’m sorry, Landon. I can’t.” The pried his arms away, turned around and left.

As the door slammed the scene changed again. Now Landon was kneeling in a dark wet alley. Before he had the chance to figure out what he was doing there an icy feeling rushed through him. He was pushed onto his back as a hooded figure towered over him. Their faces were no more than a centimeter apart. Next thing he knew he felt as if all life and warmth were being sucked out of him. He could almost see his happiest memories drifting away. He wanted to scream as his motionless body tried to hold onto them.

Landon shook unconsciously in a cold sweat as he slept. He whimpered as the scenes changed over and over again to something more terrible than the previous. Somewhere within him he willed to be woken, but the darkness was consuming him to the point that he couldn’t do it alone.

[‡ Tierney Monet Harper ‡]

Several minutes of lazy thinking soon turned into a half hour. Tierney had gotten so caught up in her thoughts she had forgotten about the water on the stove until she her sizzling behind her. She jumped up with a curse and ran over to turn the water down more and pour in the pasta. She splashed herself in her carelessness and shook her hand as she put on the sauce in another pan.

After it was on she walked to the sink and ran her hand under cold water to alleviate the burning on her splashed fingers. "What an idiot." She muttered to herself, sighing. Her hand throbbed a little, but the icy cool started helping after a while and her thoughts drifted once again. She thought about how scared Landon had looked when he ran to her in the green houses that day he killed Chanel Williams. He had been petrified.

So many times she had asked herself why she still loved him, helped him. It wasn't because she doubted her choices. It was because... because she felt she needed to ask herself? Because her mother always told her blind choices were bad choices... but even when she asked herself those questions she she came up with the same answers. She loved him and he was scared. How could she leave him if he was scared? He didn't want to do it anyway. Granted taking a life was a huge thing. Huge...

But he wouldn't have killed her had he had better choices. Had his uncle not been pressuring him. She trusted he would have never killed anyone. Landon was sweet and caring. He was not a killer. Regardless of if he had killed a girl or not. Your actions did not define who you were when commited under duress.

More sizzling attracted Tierney's attention. She turned off the tap and went back to the stove. Testing the pasta's consistency with a sppon she judged it was done and so she turned off both burners for the sauce and pot and then drained the pasta before serving it up on two plates and pouring alfredo sauce on top. She set the plates on the counter for the time being since they lacked a table and chairs. She then headed upstairs looking for Landon.

When she found his room she looked in to see him asleep in a chair by the window, but there was something wrong. She could see him shaking slightly. She rushed over and put a hand on the top of his head. "Landon, Landon wake up." She shook him a little and then leaned down and kissed his forehead to find it damp and salty. She brushed his hair back and shook him again gently. "Come on, Landon..."

She was sure he was probably just having nightmares, but something inside her was scared that it was more than that. He had been through so much and his family... his uncle mostly... could be so paranoid and so dangerous. She could not help but wonder if Uncle Lenny had put a curse on him, or if he was any good with Legilimancy. She just worried because a hundred things could go wrong with an uncle like Lenny. The crazy...

She sighed and didn't even notice that she was now staring at the floor and clutching Landon's forearm rather tightly. These were rough times for the both of them, no doubt. They could pull through though... they had to. They were barely seventeen for crying out loud! Their lives could not be over so soon because of something forced upon them like this... it was too terrible an idea.

[Landon Riley Rederick]

Dreams like the one Landon was currently having happened all the time, but they weren’t something he’d ever get used to. They felt so real and he often felt as if he couldn’t wake up. At this point, his breathing was very shallow and he felt very cold. The dementor nearly sucked out ever ounce of his soul out of his body. Landon wanted to scream but he didn’t have the strength to open his mouth. Landon could hear a noise but he couldn’t tell where it was coming from. Then he felt something on his arm and he suddenly woke with a sharp in take of breath.

The color in his skin had vanished significantly and he looked obviously distressed. When he realized that it was Tierney who had come to wake him up, he gave her a weak smile then squeezed her hand lovingly. At that moment he wanted nothing more that to put those dreams out of his mind. He knew that Tierney loved him and that the things he’d seen weren’t real. Besides, he didn’t want her to worry about him. They were just dreams. No harm done…Hopefully.

“The food ready?” he asked sweetly, as he held onto her hand. “I’m going to go freshen up before we go back down stairs, okay?” He kissed her cheek, reassuring her that he was fine, then grabbed a hand towel on his way to the bathroom. After locking the door behind him he stood over the sink and stared at himself in the mirror. He looked terribly haggard and he didn’t know what to do about it. He couldn’t get rid of the dreams and the dreams meant no sleep. Maybe Tierney knew of a sleeping potion that could prevent him from having dreams.

Momentartiyl shaking the thought from his head, he splashed his face with warm water then dried it off. At least he didn’t look completely dead now. He gave himself a once-over before leaving the bathroom and heading back to his new bedroom. “Ready to go eat?” he asked, giving her a smile that was slightly stronger.

OoC: craaaapppp.

[‡ Tierney Monet Harper ‡]

The lack of color in Landon's skin caused Tierney to frown deeply and worry about his health. Even if he didn't want her to wory - there it was. It was unavoidable when you loved someone. You worried for them, cared for them, feared for them. When you love someone you want to take all their burdens upon yourself, all theirs fears, all their problems. Tierney would rather be in Landon's position for him. She would rather be the one who had killed someone. Not him. She hated seeing him in agony over this.

He looked worn out, tired, older. It had hardly been a month yet and you would swear a year had passed. Fear and suffering did that to you though. Stress aged you mentally, physically, emotionally. It drained you. Even Tierney was exhausted from all this, but she would never let Landon know how much this affected her. He would blame himself, but Tierney chose to take on part of his burden. She chose to help him because that was what you did when you loved someone. End of story.

Landon asked if the food was ready and kissed her cheek as he left to freshen up. When he was gone she sighed heavily and looked out the window, nearly in tears. Nearly, but not quite. Everything had been changed in an instance. All hopes for the future which she had had were now improbable. She would never say impossible though. She was more optimistic than that. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes a moment to let the tears disappear.

When Landon came back into his room and asked if she was ready to eat she turned slowly from the window to see him smiling a little stronger now. She gave him a smile too and walked over, taking his hand and kissing his cheek this time. "Ready." She walked downstairs with him, not letting go of his hand even when they reached the kitchen. "We really need to get furniture somehow." She laughed at the empty room. Finally she relinquished Landon's hand and grabbed the two plates, walking over to the living room area and setting them down before the fireplace there.

She sighed as she looked at the fireplace and wished she could use her wand to start the fire, but she couldn't. Instead Tierney walked back to her pouch which was still sitting on the counter beside the stove. She pulled out another small bag and rummaged until she found a log. Walking back to the fire she set the log in it and smirked at Landon. "I knew we'd have fireplaces - I couldn't own a home without one. So I came prepared." She laughed shortly and then opened the second small bag and pulled out a pinch of a bright red powder. She sprinkled it on the wood and in an instant the log burst into flames. Purple flames.

"Magical fire. It doesn't burn the wood at all, but it needs an anchor item such as wood to work." She sat down next to her plate of food and put down the pouch beside her. "I... did some research on ways to use magic without it being considered underage magic. I figured it would be hard for us to live on our own without some form of magic when we're so used to it, you know?" She ran her hand over the carpet and shrugged.

((bleh.))

[Landon Riley Rederick]

As they walked down the stairs together, Landon squeezed her hand to assure her that he was fine. But secretly he knew that it was more for him. Landon couldn’t imagine things getting any worse. Well, as long as his uncle kept his end of the deal and he didn’t get caught. It wasn’t a big deal right? If he got caught he’d just go to Azkaban for the rest of his life and he’d lose his soul. And if his Uncle didn’t follow through with his word then he’d just kill Tierney.

Wrong. So wrong. It was a huge deal.

If either of these things happened he saw no point in living anymore. Life without a soul wasn’t worth living, neither was life without his Love. Ever since he’d met her his life made a complete 180 for the better. She made him better and without her he was nothing. Yes, they were young. And these were strong feelings for teenagers to have, but Landon hadn’t been a regular teenager. He was cocky, ignorant, and even sadistic, much like other members of his family. When Tierney came into his life she changed him and showed him what it meant to love. He couldn’t lose that.

“Yeah, furniture might be a good idea.” Though the idea of them sitting Indian style eating dinner on the floor together was kind of cute. “But I’ll let you handle that. I’ll come and stuff, but I don’t know the first thing about picking out furniture.”

Landon laughed with her when she said how prepared she was. She was always thinking ahead. And at times like these, it was what made him feel safe with her. “You, my love, are a genius. I would’ve never thought of that.” He nodded as she continued about the use of magic. “Yeah. You’re going to have to teach me everything you know because this whole living without magic thing is really rough. I might have to lock my wand away somewhere so that I can resist the temptation of using it.”

“So, what did you cook? It smells delicious.”

Ooc: sorry it’s late and boring. Terrible writer’s block.