Have We met? PV Closed

For context, see Have We Met? in the Library

The boy traced his finger along the walls. It looked uncomfortable, and Rhea couldn't stop imagining his nails scraping against the rough surface, which made her cringe a bit. Maybe it was soothing to him, though. She wondered if he did it often.

He made for the Hufflepuff table, which should have surprised her but didn't. She supposed he had his reasons, which she wished she could reason from his irritatingly unchanging expression. But no. She had no idea.

He asked her a question.

Hadn't Rhea already mentioned her mom's name and blood status? Or maybe she was just delirious. That wouldn't be surprising. He looked genuinely invested in what she had to say, and she was sorry to let him down.

"Her name is- was- Ann Sondra Miller. a pureblood. I couldn't tell you anything else about her if I wanted to, though. I never knew her, and my father has always been secretive about the whole disappearance, so... I apologize. I wish I had- could provide more information." She corrected herself, trying to sound more intelligent to him.

Rhea reached out and wrapped her hand around a cool glass of water, then raised it to her lips and chugged down the entirety. It was the best feeling, nearly as soothing as she had imagined it to be.

"I didn't catch your name," she said finally, wiping moisture off her mouth with the back of her hand. Unsanitary but efficient. She desperately (that might be an exaggeration) wanted to speculate about how they might be related, but she had no idea. She hoped that this whole interaction would prove educational in that area. Rhea supposed she would find out.

@Michael Miller

@Rhea Miller

Michael watched her, as she seem to collect her thoughts. He was wary of that, was she looking over something someone had told her to memorize? Was this some trick to make her seem more. . pure? "Her name is- was- Ann Sondra Miller. a pureblood. I couldn't tell you anything else about her if I wanted to, though. I never knew her, and my father has always been secretive about the whole disappearance, so... I apologize. I wish I had- could provide more information." He hummed at the girls words. He knew a Ann Sondra, but not as a Miller, As a Markopoulas.

There was again, Family things one doesn't discuss, but Michael knew of the Markopoulas, and he knew they were his family and the skeletons in the family closet.

He didn't want to say anything, the less she knew the better. But it still bite at him. It was that the mother of the girl had the name Markopoulas, and that this father of hers wasn't in his records. But he was a Muggle. Maybe he was not recorded at all.

But still.

"I didn't catch your name," the girl said, getting his out of his thoughts. "Michael Mar- Miller." He said, cursing himself for the slipup. He smiled, a tightlip one. "We are related as your mother's name is familiar, even if she was not blood but married in. She must have been a pureblood for her to be in the records, do you know her heritage?" He asked looking over all he knew mentally.

"Michael Mar- Miller."

Rhea noticed his stumble, and it surprised her more than it should have. She was oddly jumpy, but at least properly hydrated, so she shouldn't complain. Michael was still frightening (though less so now). He appeared to be deep in thought. Perhaps his distraction was the reason for his blunder. She contemplated for a moment with him, until he spoke again.

"We are related as your mother's name is familiar, even if she was not blood but married in." Okay, so they were definitely from the same family. Good to know. "She must have been a pureblood for her to be in the records," Michael continued. "Do you know her heritage?"

"Er..." Rhea tried to think. "I believe so. She was a pureblood, I mean." She swirled her empty glass, the bottom scraping the wooden table. She knew that Ann Sondra had a different surname before she married Rhea's father, but couldn't recall it. It started with an 'M' too, right? Only much longer. She stuck her tongue between her teeth, trying to think. Maybe she could at least provide some assistance in deciphering what kind of relationship they had. Cousins? Siblings, even? It would be so odd to discover that she had a brother. Of course, that was unlikely, since Rhea and Michael were most likely born within nine months of each other. Perhaps they shared a father? Her father had no resemblance to Michael, though. Again, unlikely.

"I can't remember my mother's maiden name," she said finally, breaking the near silence. "It was long, I believe. Started with the syllable 'Mark'. Do you know any like that?"

@Michael Miller

"I can't remember my mother's maiden name," she said finally, breaking the near silence. "It was long, I believe. Started with the syllable 'Mark'. Do you know any like that?"


Michael would be a liar if he said his heart did skip a beat at the name. His thoughts had been correct, his aunt, removed for marrying a muggle man, was her mother. He licked his lips as he thought for a second his mind everywhere. He looked over the girl, she was his cousin. "I- . . . Markopoulas. Her last name was Markopoulas. You won't find anything good on that name in any book. Decades ago the Millers were the Markopoulases, though they made deals with evil men and they made decisions that cost them many things." He stopped and stood.

"I'm sorry but.. . I have to go," he said and grabbed his things, nearly running out of the great hall. His heartbeat was racing and he felt like he should owl his parents but he didn't want to admit he said anything.

The Markopoulas name was supposed to end with his parents, it was supposed to be dead. Now, so girl, raised muggle was here and would probably want answers he couldn't give. He made it to his dorm quickly, where he stayed for the next couple of hours wondering what he just messed up.