"I'm either havin' a drink or I have to pee; you're living the golden years, kid, not me!"

PV thread to @Reid Kovacs, @Ami Procoppio, and @Scott Alexander

Alexx tapped her foot anxiously, eyes scanning the area. She was at a family residence that was in Greater Manchester; a temporary home for her. However temporary, the mansion was, as described, a mansion. Large. Grand. Lovely. Modern. Alexx detested the modern look, deeming that it looked far too... Boring for her liking. There was something about old homes that were just beautiful. They had character and feeling. Modern homes just felt like a box that contained you. A roof over your head, but nothing more. Or maybe Alexx just liked things to be on a grander scale. No one would deny that Alexx was interested in being pampered.

A hand fell down on her shoulder. Today was the first day in these past few months that she had seen her eldest brother, Mickaël. Mickaël, or "Mikey" for short, was in the middle of a strange custody battle. It was relatively uncommon for older siblings, let alone the age of 19, to request custody of their older siblings. The living situation usually wasn't bad enough for that. And truth be told, Alexx did not have a terrible life. She had all this money, a huge house, and three loving siblings. But then there were the neglectful parents. The ones that were also criminals. So, Mikey deemed this necessary. Alexx was left in the dark about other details, mostly due to her fragile age, but Mikey insisted that there was much, much more to the story than she knew. She trusted him.

Turning her head, she looked up at the blonde headed man. It was strange to consider Mikey a man, but he had technically been a "man" for over two years now. Still, she still saw him the same way that she did when he was 16, Ravenclaw tie around his neck, books in his arms. "Quoi?" She asked him in a casual tone.

"Vous êtes nerveux." Mikey declared, raising his eyebrows at her. The blonde girl turned away, hardening her face. Of course, Alexx was nervous. But she wasn't intending on outwardly showing it. Alexx had never in her life hosted a gathering. Well, she hadn't exactly had friends up until now. She didn't know if she could really do this. She wasn't an entertainer by trade, nor was she a social butterfly. Alexx wasn't popular or unique or interesting. She was Alexx. The same Alexx who loved her three friends quite dearly.

Tex leaned on the kitchen doorway, arms crossed. "Tell me again about the boys you plan on bringing here?" He asked, unimpressed. Over the summer, Tex had really buckled down and became the overprotective brother. When he learned that Scott and Reid were invited to this, he wasn't happy. Even though Alexx only had eyes for Ami, or something like that, he was quite convinced in the way that she mused about Reid, her newfound Hufflepuff companion and partner-in-crime, that she had other interests. Alexx did not know how to break it to Tex that Reid was the most uninterested in girls that a boy his age could be.

Her blue eyes rolled, almost right off her face. "Just Reid and Scott. But Ami will be there too!" She defended, shooting him a convincing smile. "They're cool, okay? So be nice." Texas laid off, but mumbled something about 'English boys'. Mikey shot him a warning look, to which he raised his hands in defense, making his way back to the kitchen.

Uncle Jean took his place, with a look that was much more proud and satisfied than that of her brothers. "I am just glad that you actually have friends. Your mother said that you were a loner; I almost put stock into those words. You haven't told me about your friends yet." He leaned on the counter, clasping his hands together and smiling at her. Uncle Jean had been her saving grace this summer. She liked him more than she liked most of her family, and had been very grateful to have stayed with him.

Tapping her chin, she thought about it. "Well, they're all third years, like me. Ami is in Hufflepuff. She's my secretary on the newspaper. She also gave me cookies! But I think that was just to bribe me out of being mad at her for almost missing her deadline. She's from America, I think. Her cat tried to eat Reid's toad on the train ride home. Reid is a Hufflepuff, too! He's also on the paper, but I can't remember what he does... Anyway, I met him at a funeral I think, and then we had to share a cabin together. Thought he was weird back then... Well, he is weird. And he talks a lot. He can be annoying sometimes, but I like him I suppose. We raised a plant together. Douglas. Oh, Scott is on the paper too, but he's a Gryffindor. Ami's sidekick. I don't know him that well, but you can't have Ami without Scott, and he seems cool as it is. And his cat is nice. She likes Rosalie, I think." Alexx could go on for days about how much she loved her friends! She would spend hours talking about them if she could, but seldom did she mention herself. More than anything, Alexx was excited to have people around.

She would have invited Dymph, or Bloom, or Phae, or... Well, or anyone. She really would have. But her living situation was hard enough at the moment without admitting that to half the school (let alone the Ravenclaw half of her friendships). These three were the people that she knew the best. And besides that, she didn't want to remind Mikey of the family if Dymph were to make an appearance. She hoped that she would understand. It was merely bad timing.

Uncle Jean smiled, but before he could speak up again, Grand-mère Jeannine came in hurriedly. "Alexxandria! You cannot go to your own party dressed in such rubbish! You look like you are going to bed!" Alexx looked down at herself, cringing at her full name. She was wearing what she always wore- a shirt and shorts. But Grand-mère was very strict about appearances. Before Alexx had the chance to respond, she called out, "Irène! Cyrille! Come find appropriate clothes for your niece! Elle a l'air hideux!"

Tatie Irène and Tante Cyrille came from another room, eying her. "Mm. Go figure. Dresses just like her mother. Come on, doll," Tante Cyrille said in a bland tone, gripping Alexx by her arm and yanking her away. Alexx sent a pleasing look to Uncle Jean, but he sent one back that told her this was out of his hands. Her aunts were always annyoing. "Your mother had no sense of fashion either." Tanta Cyrille stated under her breath, dragging Alexx away.

In the room that Alexx was staying in, the twins shuffled through her clothes, looking for something that they deemed acceptable. They settled on an outfit that Alexx would have never put together herself, but claimed that she "was 13" and "should gain a sense of fashion". It peeved her that she couldn't at least dress how she wanted to on her own birthday, but she set aside her complaints for later.

Trudging back to the living room, looking dreadfully disappointed and pained, she heard Tex snicker at her, to which she threw a newspaper at him. "It isn't funny!" She informed him decidedly, cinching her eyebrows together. "I look stupid." A pout crossed her face, and she looked towards her feet. The outfit wasn't that bad, she was simply being stubborn.

"You look presentable, darling. Aren't you worried about what the boys will think if they see you in such casual clothing?" Grand-mère asked, her face twisting. Uncle Jean turned to her with a glare.

"She shouldn't give a damn about what boys think of her! Let the poor girl dress however she wants." He shot Alexx a wink, which caused her to smile. But before the argument could go much further, Mikey guided Grand-mère back into the kitchen. The last thing that he needed was more family drama. Mikey was at wits end with this family, and he was not going to let them ruin today, too. He respected his siblings more than anyone else in their family, and he simply couldn't have the estranged relationships bringing them all apart on a day of celebration.

Running a hand through his thick, dark hair, Tex sighed. "Lexx, can you go wait on the porch for your friends?" He asked. Alexx decided now was not the time to argue with him. She simply nodded, shuffling towards the door. As she turned away, she could hear hushed arguing, and a mix of Grand-père snoring from his chair. On her way towards the door, she took off his reading glasses and set his newspaper on the coffee table. She envied anyone who could sleep through such chaos. She wished that she could be asleep. Today was not a day that she wanted to celebrate, but in such a family, you couldn't avoid it. Through all the fighting and all the negativity, one would never go a birthday without celebrating. At least she would have friends to help her muscle through it all.

Stepping onto the stone porch, she looked out into the yard, where Emmaline was playing with her cat, Roger. Her sister looked up towards her, smiling and waving. "Lexx! Roger killed a bird!" She cried out proudly. She was always so proud when her cat brought her dead mice or birds.

"That's great, Em!" She replied, though her voice lacked enthusiasm. She did not know how she was ever going to cheer up today. Her family always found a way to ruin things somehow.

The door opened and closed behind her, and Uncle Jean took a seat next to her on the porch. "Hey, kid." He said in a low, apologetic voice. Alexx did not respond for a moment. She was contemplating what to say. "Don't be upset, alright? Today is your day still. I know our family is crazy, but..." He trailed off, almost as if her were searching for a positive, but couldn't find it.

Alexx shot him a half-smile. "It's alright, Uncle Jean."

He chuckled, nodding. "Yeah, I suppose you are used to it by now." He shrugged, shrinking down into himself. "You know," He followed up, turning to look towards her. "If you ever want to come stay with me... In America, I mean. I could get you into Ilvermorny. It isn't a bad school. And the classes are decent."

Shocked, Alexx nearly jumped out of her skin. She couldn't be rude and outright refuse him, but she definitely wasn't going to leave behind what she already had. Part of her also believed that Uncle Jean was merely trying to make up for the loss of Macaire, who was currently living away from her Uncle Jean. That was not his fault, however. A marriage went bad led to those circumstances, though she was sure that her Uncle Jean regretted plenty, and certainly wished to be closer to Macaire. He wanted for Alexx to get to know him, too. So that the family would not be as damage in the following generations as it currently was.

Macaire was here today. Somewhere. From her understanding, he was out, present shopping. Alexx didn't want gifts, but Uncle Jean had insisted.

"I will keep that in mind." She replied politely, smiling at him. He smiled back, understanding. Alexx would not easily leave behind her friends, nor should she have to.

"The option is always there." He concluded, looking out. His eyes turned distant, almost like he was thinking. Alexx wondered what thoughts went through her Uncle Jeans head. He seemed to be so trapped in his own mind, and he didn't even realize it. Was this what a midlife crisis was life? She wasn't sure, because Alexx didn't think that she would want to be exactly like someone who was going through a crisis. Uncle Jean was admirable. He knew things that others did not.

So they sat there, looking out into the yard, awaiting Alexx's friends. Perhaps today would not be as bad as she speculated. She hoped so, at least. She didn't know what she would do if her family made a scene in front of her friends.

TRANSLATIONS:

Quoi? - What?
Vous êtes nerveux. - You are nervous.
Elle a l'air hideux! - She looks hideous!