Work Text:
Aedion should have known Aelin was going to abandon him the second they arrived at Lysandra's apartment. His cousin was supposed to have two roles; serve as moral support and babysit Lysandra's little sister. His first date with Lys needed to go well, and Aelin was dropping the ball. Hard.
He had never met Evangeline before, had only heard of her through Lysandra and Aelin, and he didn't have much contact with children. Was she a child at 11 years old? Did she qualify as a preteen? He didn't know how to carry a conversation between a grown man and a preteen girl. He would sooner take a punch to the jaw.
He went for the safest thing he could imagine. "So, what are you watching?"
The movie was one he had seen a hundred times or more, but the commercial break allowed him the blessing of an ice breaker. Evangeline slid her skeptical gaze toward where he sat in the armchair.
"Have you heard of Harry Potter?"
Aedion blinked, trying to determine if she meant to be sarcastic. " Who hasn't seen Harry Potter?"
Evangeline shrugged and said, "I didn't know! I mean, you are—" She glanced over, weighing the risks of finishing her sentence. "—I don't know. You're closer to my sister's age."
"Exactly!" He tried not to sound indignant. "Harry Potter is more my generation than yours."
"Hm. Have you read the books?"
The nerve on this girl was incredible. "Yes, I've read them all." The commercials ended, revealing a scene he could nearly narrate from memory. "This is Prisoner of Azkaban."
Evangeline dared to look impressed, but she schooled her expression. "I was just checking. I'm re-reading them right now." As close to a truce as he would get.
"I wore mine out over the years."
The two of them watched the movie before commercials began. He had felt aware of every second that Lysandra and Aelin didn't appear, but at least he had wizards to distract him.
"You're a Gryffindor?"
Aedion didn't love her tone. "I am, actually."
A smirk pulled at Evangeline's mouth. "Yeah, you seem like one." Whatever the hell that was supposed to mean.
"And what House are you?" he demanded. He silently chastised himself; then, he wished he hadn't with Evangeline's haughty reply.
Somehow, the girl looked down her nose. "Ravenclaw."
"The scrutiny makes more sense now," he grumbled and remembered he was supposed to be winning Evangeline's favor. "Which of the books was your favorite?"
"Order of the Phoenix."
"Ravenclaw through and through."
That earned him a smile. She didn't seem the type to offer them freely, so Aedion celebrated the win internally.
"Let me guess. Yours is Goblet of Fire?"
Aedion nodded. "It's a key turning point in the series. During the tournament, when the ritual is performed in the cemetery, things turned darker from there on."
"So, not the competition between schools of magic or the dragons?"
He almost bristled at the stereotype before he remembered doing the exact thing. "They didn't hurt."
The two of them shared a laugh. They had found common ground in the wizarding world, and Aedion was thankful for it.
"Aelin and I had to share the books growing up," he shared, unsure of what made him say it. He kind of liked the kid, if he was honest. "We wrote to each other in the margins."
"Really? What did you write?"
"A bit of everything. Sometimes we wrote our reactions, and sometimes we would jot questions to talk about later. Every now and then, Aelin would underline quotes. I would have done the same, but we seemed to like the same stuff."
"Oh, maybe I could get Lys to do that with me; if I can convince her to re-read them."
"I could work on that at dinner," he offered with a wink. That earned him a wide smile. "In the meantime, what if I sent a book with Aelin next time she comes over. Maybe Order of the Phoenix? You could read our stuff, and we could talk about it."
Evangeline sat a bit taller. "Really?"
"Of course. I'll talk to her."
"Thanks, Aedion."
They returned their attention to the movie for another few minutes. A question nagged at him and he realized he had the perfect person to answer it.
"Evangeline, what House does Lys belong to?"
She eyes him curiously, turning toward the TV with a mischievous glint in her eye. "You'll have to ask her."
As if on cue, the two women finally emerged from Lysandra's bedroom. She was as stunning as always.
"Ready?" she asked.
Aedion stood while she hugged Evangeline goodbye, giving her strict orders to be good with Aelin. He decided now was a good time to ask.
"Lys, what Hogwarts house are you?"
She slipped her phone into her back pocket and walked toward the door.
"Slytherin. Why?"
He glanced at Evangeline just long enough to see her lips twitch.
"No reason," he paused, projecting his voice as he closed the door. "At least you're not a Ravenclaw."