Hermes is the Greek god of luck, thieves, and travel. He also leads souls to the River Styx, before boatman Charon takes them away to the Hades. But above all, he is often known as the messenger and herald of the Olympian gods.

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d r a c o

Codrus quickly became part of our lives. Angel and him were always chatting over the wall while they gardened. We had a garden room extension, or a conservatory of sorts. From inside, one had a complete 360-view of the garden. I had it made for her last year, so Angel and I could watch the stars in another place other than the balcony of her room. She thought it was so I could always keep an eye on her. She was not wrong.

It had become a vantage point for me. I would pretend to watch telly, but really, I would be looking at them, stewing. I wish I had a way with words like Codrus. He could carry on a conversation much better than me. And Angel was always smiling with him.

If he wasn't chatting with Angel over the wall while they gardened, he would be over for dinner. And if he wasn't doing that, I would hear about his study of Atmospheric charms from her. It was something I had to accept - Codrus was here to stay, whether I liked it or not.

In some ways, he was a friend I could finally share with her. I never truly ever connected with Hannah and Susan, or the Trio, and I detested Lorcan more than I did Codrus, thus making the latter the lesser of evils.

He and I would talk about Quidditch, mostly. Sometimes, the three of us would go to the Dragon's Horn for dinner and a drink. He told us he'd been attending a program for aspiring astronomers at the Ministry before the death eaters had destroyed it during the war, which was how he got his current job.

There had been once we'd gotten extremely woozy, stumbling back to ours and collapsing on our couch. It was then, to our surprise, that he started telling us about his brother.

Callum Armstrong. He had worked in the Ministry too. The lady who sat beside him for seven years was a Muggle-born. They were like best friends, almost. When the death eaters first attacked, they stormed his office, snatched her right from her desk. She struggled, and they murdered her, right in front of the entire office. Callum said he will never forget the look in her eyes when she died. Was never the same after that. Shut himself up in his room muttering to himself. Their dad was at his wit's end.

I had not wanted to admit it, but the story sounded familiar. My palms remained clasped between my knees as I listened. Angel touched his shoulder, her eyebrows upturned in empathy.

Codrus buried his face in his hands, and I looked to her over his hunched back. I hadn't needed to say anything. A whisper of a smile on her lips, and her earthen eyes looked at me like I was made of water and air. Don't be, she said without speaking. I love you.

Those were the better times. As with the inevitable dualisms of this world, Codrus' presence also brought about much discordance.

"Why are you always spending so much time with him?" I would constantly ask. She would argue back: "because he's the only friend of mine you'd accept!"

Her answers were never enough for me. I would drive at it for as long as I could, palms clammy with anxiety, until she cried out in frustration and left the room. Our marriage hung by a thread, a thin sliver of spider silk that could snap at a touch.

We never rowed in front of Codrus, but I was certain she told him over the wall. Whenever we were together, it felt like she and him had a secret only they knew about, and I was left in the dark.

In the infinitesimal moments of respite when I had Angel just to myself, perhaps just before bed, or at the first crack of dawn, I would love her more than I thought I would be capable of. It was just the two of us in the Astronomy Tower, where she told me about the constellations.

If I could have told the sun to slow its spilling golden rays, or instructed the moon to take its time, or commanded the earth to stop spinning just so I could have more time alone with her, I would have; but I had no such power. I left such celestial miracles to Angel.

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a n g e l

I knelt in the soil, spreading the mulch evenly between the lavender bushes. I was just yanking out two stray weeds when Draco called me from the living room. I pulled off my gloves and flicked the soil off my apron and knees.

The blood rushed to my head suddenly, and I had the urge to be sick. Sparks flickered across my vision and I steadied myself, squeezing my eyes shut for a few seconds. The missed hours of sleep was seriously getting to me.

As I moved towards the house, I caught sight of silhouettes moving behind the glass doors. I wondered if it was Codrus, but no, there were at least four people inside with Draco. I tugged the tinted glass doors, only to see Harry, Hermione, Ron, Hannah, and Susan standing awkwardly around the couch.

We haven't met in some time - Hannah was busy with the Leaky Cauldron. Susan was occupied with writing her new book on extinct magical creatures and taking care of her two wolf-dogs, Perseus and Basilius. They're so big you could practically ride them, she'd say. Without stopping to wonder why they were even here, I dove to hug them.

"Angel. Malfoy." Harry still greeted Draco by his last name. "Uh- we've come with some news."

I blinked in surprise. It was only then did I notice their expressions were hard and grave.

"You might want to sit down," Hermione warned. I did, but Draco remained standing, arms folded.

"I'll tell them," said Hermione before Harry could open his mouth. "I know this is going to be horrifying to hear, and we're going to be dragging up some painful memories, but we thought it's best you two knew."

"Well, get on with it, Granger," Draco said irritably.

She took a deep breath. "A bunch of Death Eaters have escaped Azkaban. Among them were... Barnabas Abigor and his father."

There was only stunned silence as I tried to process what Hermione was telling me. Barnabas Abigor, the boy who had tried to kill Draco, who had only been caught just a few months before last Christmas, now free again.

"What?" Draco sputtered. "And where are they now?"

"That's the thing. We... we don't really know," said Harry.

"You two are Aurors, are you not?" Draco was incensed, gesturing to Ron and Harry. "A bunch of prisoners have escaped Azkaban and you're telling me you don't know where they are?"

"There's something else," Hermione said, taking my hand in hers. "They had help. From outside. It was Lucius Malfoy." She paused to let this sink in.

"What?" I breathed. Draco dropped his arms in shock. "My father? And when- when did this happen?"

"We got the news just thirty minutes ago," Ron shuffled uncomfortably. "We came to warn you at once."

I immediately picked up on that. "Warn us? You think they would come for... for Draco?"

Harry's lips pursed regretfully. "We can't be sure. Either way, we're sending an official from the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol. His name is Rutherford and he will be stationed nearby your house at all times. I want you to report anything you find suspicious, even if it may seem ordinary at first."

"And why are you two here?" Draco jerked his head at Hannah and Susan.

"Moral support, you troll," Hannah snapped.

"In case you felt like you needed some company," added Susan gently.

Anxiety began to bubble in my chest. Almost everything in our home belonged to my parents. Each piece was a key to memories I kept safely locked up in my mind, links to my past life with them, when they had been alive. The thought of Death Eaters breaking in, destroying everything, taking Draco; it made me feel sick.

Then something else came up in my throat, and it wasn't anxiety.

I excused myself and raced to the bathroom. With a giant heave, I hurled what felt like all my internal organs. Warm fingers brushed against my cheek as someone held my hair back. From the way the stray chocolate strands fell over my shoulders, I could tell it was Susan. I felt silly, like a teenager who didn't yet know how much alcohol was too much.

"Give her space," she said to someone as she stroked my back. My stomach gurgled, and I threw up again, my knuckles turning white from gripping the sides of the toilet bowl so hard.

The sounds of footsteps and voices mingled as everyone else clamoured to see what was happening. Hannah threatened to hex them if they did not leave the bathroom this very instant. They faded away, and the bathroom door clicked shut.

"Drink," Hannah instructed, handing me a glass of water. I sipped gratefully as Susan dabbed the sweat from my hairline. "Feeling better?" she asked. I shook my head. "I feel bloody awful, like slugs in my stomach."

"Angel, have you been feeling sick a lot?" Susan asked suddenly.

"Yeah. Draco's cooking skills aren't the best," I tried to laugh, but her frown remained. "Sick and tired? Going to the bathroom more frequently?" she pressed.

"I suppose?" I answered hesitantly.

"What're you driving at, Suze?" asked Hannah. Susan was studying me carefully, her honeyed irises flicking back and forth across my face. She lay a palm on my stomach for a few moments.

"Angel, I think you're pregnant."