Hortense didn’t know what to think when they arrived back at their flat, and Kendis was waiting for them with a guilty look on her face. There was a blur of motion, then a heavy weight of an overenthusiastic Cane Corso bearing down on her.

“Hello, love,” Hortense cooed and then noticed the cone around her neck. She shot Kendis an alarmed look.

“Uhm, she might have gotten into a bit of an accident.” Kendis looked away. “Dr. Lan Zhan says she will be right as rain in a few weeks.”

Hortense might not have known Kendis as long as Hermione and Ron, but she did know Kendis. She was her best friend, and Kendis was not as subtle as she thought she was.

Every scenario from fighting another dark lord to Kendis accidentally burning down the shop flashed through her mind. ‘Don’t get ahead of yourself, Hortense,’ she chided herself.

Hortense took a deep breath, and then, when Alke went over to Isiah for attention, she hurried to her friend and pulled her into a hug. Hortense was a hugger and never gave in to that stiff upper lip crap that many of her fellow Englishmen subscribed to.

“You missed me that much?” Kendis chuckled, and Hortense snorted as she took a step back. Her eyes swept up and down her friend and frowned. Kendis was way too pale; there were dark circles underneath her eyes, and it looked like she had lost a stone or two.

“You look like shite,” Hortense frowned.

“Tensie,” Isiah chided her as he came over to them to pull them into a hug.

Hortense shot her boyfriend an annoyed look, but Isiah only returned it with a warm smile.

“How was your holiday? Did you have fun?” Kendis non-subtly tried to change the subject. It didn’t matter; Hortense would drag the truth out of her sooner or later.

Hortense knew when she accepted the trip to Isla de Mánea that something was wrong, but Kendis was stubborn as hell. And every time Hortense had tried to ask her about it, Kendis would brush her off. It wasn’t until Kendis gifted her with a trip that Hortense knew that it was truly serious.

Hortense decided that the best thing for both Isiah and her was to leave Kendis to handle whatever was stressing her out. It might have seemed cowardly, and despite her best efforts, her guilt gnawed on Hortense during their entire holiday. But Hortense was a Ravenclaw, not a Gryffindor.

And unlike Cho Chang, Hortense didn’t dare to go against Umbridge and join Dumbledore’s Army in her fourth year. That toad of a woman was terrifying, and Hortense didn’t want to experience one of her notorious detentions.

Isiah was even worse than she was. Hortense could at least verbally eviscerate someone when they got on her nerves, but Isiah, despite his size, was a bloody teddy bear.

Hortense knew that staying here would only distract Kendis from handling her business, so she left.

“We did.” Isiah tightened his hold around her waist and dropped a kiss on her head. “The beaches were beautiful, and I even managed to convince Tensie to get into the water with me.”

“Pics or it didn’t happen!” Kendis laughed as Alke trotted back to her.

“Do you know how bad salt water is on 4C hair?” Hortense huffed and crossed her arms. “And I don’t trust those magical swim caps one bit!”

“Dis, is it true?” Isiah asked suddenly. “About Stark? Are you really together?”

“It was all over the Wizarding papers.” Hortense shook her head. “Even on Isla de Mánea.”

“Yeah, turns out. It was not simply just a one-night stand.” Kendis shrugged, but Hortense noticed the way she bit her lip and how Kendis wouldn’t meet her eyes. Hortense knew that there was a lot more going on than what she was saying.

Hortense took a deep breath and then another. “Okay, out with it.”

“I got drunk in Vegas, and we got married? Kendis winced.

“WHAT???!!” Hortense shouted, “I knew you two were shagging, but MARRRIAGE, Dis???!”

Alke yelped and then barked at the sudden noise. Kendis winced, and Hortense turned to Isiah, whose mouth was wide open.

“KENDIS BLACK, YOU DIDN’T GET MARRIED WITHOUT TELLING ME!” Hortense slapped her friend on the shoulder.

Kendis winced and covered her ears. Hortense shut her mouth and felt her cheeks flush hot with embarrassment. She forgot about Kendis’s auditory processing issues.

“Sorry,” Hortense apologized, but then she was grabbing Kendis’s hand and dragging her to the sofa. “Sit down and tell us everything!”

“You just got home and—”

Hortense glared at her friend and pointed at the empty spot next to her. Kendis gave a put-upon sigh and plopped down on the sofa. Isiah sat next to her, and Alke whined as she put her head on Kendis’s lap.

Kendis sighed as she thought about all that she went through. “Where do I begin?”

“It’s always best to start at the beginning,” Isiah replied dryly.

Kendis shot Isiah a look and then rolled her eyes. “Fine, it all started at Sean and Dean’s bachelor party…”