Sisterly Bonding Time

It was a known fact that Juliette cared about her family. Of course she did. They were always going to be there for her.

So deciding to visit her little sister while she was at school was right up her alley. Giving the palace of Beaxbatons a fond smile as she apparated into the city of Palaisvue, she hummed softly, making her way towards the cafe they'd agreed to meet in.

Stepping inside, she glanced around for a moment, checking to see if Lisette had beaten her to it. Not seeing the familiar dark head of hair, she slipped into one of the seats, glancing outside.

Now all she had to do was wait.

Lisette walked briskly down the path towards the little crepe shop. Her heart was racing quicker than usual, and there was a slight blush in her cheeks that wasn't due to any makeup. If anyone asked, she would have said it was because she had walked all the way from Beauxbatons. She, of course, would never admit that it was out of excitement at seeing her sister again.

She stepped into the store and saw Juliette at a table, surrounded by her usual aura of perfection that Lisette had always admired. She smiled at her sister and sat down, "Bonjour, Juli! It's so nice to see you. I mean, away from the hospital, that is..." The girl bit her lip and looked down, already feeling bad about bringing it up.

"So, how are things? Are you still in Paris? Or have you been traveling?" She tried to keep herself from asking too many questions at once, but it was difficult. She hadn't seen Juliette in so long.

Being back in Palaisvue for the first time in a long while was both oddly familiar and disconcerting. Absolutely nothing about the little shop had changed since the last time she'd been there, other than the faces. It still smelled as sweet, the seats were just as comfortable. But none of that was on Juliette's mind.

The only thing she was thinking about was her sister. Glancing out the window and grinning at the sight of the Angelique, she hummed softly as Lisette walked in. "Hey Lise." Frowning at her sister as she looked down at her lap, Juliette leaned towards her, speaking softly, "Brighten up. Dad's feeling better, so c'mon, smile." Leaning back, she watched her sister for a moment, "I missed you, you know."

Grinning, she sighed happily. Things weren't just good. They were great. "Everything's amazing. Bill takes good care of me." her grin widened, and she added a little wink, "I just spent a couple days in Azorat, actually. Oh, I bought you something," her eyes glimmering, she rifled through her purse, pulling out the little wrapped package, sliding it across the table to the dark-haired prefect. "Hope you like it."

Pushing a strand of hair behind her ear, Juliette said, "But enough about me. How's my favourite little prefect doing?"

Lisette smiled as she tilted her head back up at her sister, "I missed you too." Even now, she missed her. The moments she had with Juliette always seemed so fleeting. After all, she only had a certain amount of time in Palaisvue before she had to get back to the school. Just the thought of that made her a little bit sad.

The girl's smile stayed strong as she listened to her sister talk about her life. She had only ever gotten small glimpses of it from time to time, but it was enough to show her that this was the world where Juliette belonged. Lisette's eyes lit up as she took the gift, gingerly turning it in her hands, before carefully unwrapping the box. She opened it with an unintentional gasp, "Oh, wow... This is amazing." She grinned at it, then back up at her sister, "Thank you. Really."

Lisette began fiddling with the box as she searched for an answer to the question. One which, up until this moment, she hadn't really considered. After a few seconds, she smiled, "Despite all the traditional sixth-year drama... I'm actually doing really well. My grades are good, and shockingly enough, I'm happy."

Unable to keep the grin off of her face, Juliette watched Lisette open her present, letting out a little relieved sigh as the younger girl's eyes lit up. Even though she tried to spend as much as time as possible with her sister, she still hadn't been sure that she'd like her present. "You're welcome, but really, it's nothing. Only the best for my darling sister, right?" she said with a grin.

"Happy's good," the twenty-two year old said softly, nodding. If she'd been anything but happy, Juliette probably would've marched right up to Beauxbatons and make them fix whatever was troubling her little sister. "Any guys caught your eye?" she asked, grinning as she raised an eyebrow.

Lisette blushed a little, "Well... there's one guy, but..." She shook her head with a small smile, "You probably don't want to hear about him." She already knew that her sister would insist on it, but that didn't mean she wouldn't try.

The girl slapped her hands on the table as she stood up, "I'm gonna go order. You want anything?"

"Ooh. There is!" Juliette squealed, clapping her hands together. "C'mon," she grinned, leaning across the table, eyes sparkling. If Lisette thought she could get away without telling her everything, her sister was dead wrong. "Tell me everything about him."

Raising a single perfectly manicured finger, she grinned, her eyes positively lighting up, "Wait, is it that Julian guy? It's him, isn't it?" Though it had been a while since she'd seen the boy (how long was it? Two, three years?), hadn't he been rather adorable? By now, wouldn't he be quite the catch?

"Crepes are fine," Juliette smiled. Food was nothing more than superfluous. Right now, all that really mattered was spending time with her sister.

Lisette bit her lip against the grin that was breaking out across her face. Finally, she couldn't help but give an embarrassingly girly giggle, "Ugh! You're the worst." She said, and giggled again.

The girl shook her head, "No, Julian's just a friend. A really good one too," she said, throwing a knowing glance at her sister, "So don't go messing things up, okay? Oh!" She smiled again, adjusting herself in her seat, "That reminds me, Julian might be staying over at our house for Christmas. Dad said it was okay."

Her excitement died down a little as she looked down at her hands, "There's another guy though. I didn't really know him before this year... He's italian and... Well... totally adorable." This time, her smile was less excited and more warm as she remembered the way that Zander would stutter and blush every time she said something really direct.

Lisette's eyes lit back up as she snapped back to reality, "Right. Crepes," and she strode off to the counter to order some.

Grinning at the blush that spread across her sister's face, Juliette shook her head, unable to contain her amusement. Lisette had it bad for this boy, didn't she? "Maybe," she sang, "But you still love me, Lis."  

A tiny little pout crossing her face, she shrugged it off. Just because people looked cute together didn't mean they'd work together. She'd seen enough of those cases. "Oh, I'd never." Her eyes widened, and she raised her hands up in mock surrender, though she was unable to stop the grin from forming. Her grin sliding off her face, she tilted her head, worry worming its way onto her face. "Because he just wants to spend more time with you or because there's something actually wrong?"

Her eyes lighting up, she clapped her hands together. "Ooh, Italian. Is his accent just the sexiest thing you've ever heard? What's he like? What's his name? C'mon Lis, I want to know everything." 

Humming softly, she waited for Lisette to come back, excited and curious about the younger Josse's love life. 

Lisette grinned, setting down the two plates on the table and sitting back down, "Of course I do."

"Julian's..." The girl bit her lip, trying to find the right words so she could tell her sister the truth without saying anything that she shouldn't, "He's not having the best year, and... well, he just needs to be around people who really care about him, that's all."

"His name's Zander, well his real name is Alexander, but we just call him Zander. And he's just the sweetest. There's just something so... innocent about him. He's probably one of the most honest people I know. And... he genuinely likes making people happy. I don't know how a person like him even exists," she smiled, "but I'm really glad that he does."

"Good," Juliette grinned back, "If you didn't, it'd just break my heart. I'd be crushed." She clasped a hand over her heart for emphasis.

Nodding slowly, her brow creased slightly, thinking back to the conversation she'd had with the boy's brother. Honestly, she couldn't blame the boy for wanting to spend his time with anyone other than Corin. She found the boy aggravating at times, but the way he spoke of his own brother... "Take good care of him."

Grinning, Juliette's eyes sparkled as her little sister spoke. This boy - Zander - he sounded like quite the catch. And Lisette just seemed so happy talking about him. Zander almost seemed too good to be true. "He sounds amazing, Lis. So," she leaned forward, her eyes bright and shining. "the most important question has to be asked: What does Zander think about you?"

Lisette's eyes widened a little bit, her head tilting towards her sister, "But... you'll be there, right?" A frown pulled at the corners of her mouth, "For Christmas, I mean." It was one of the few times of the year when she could be around her sister for more than a few hours. The holidays just wouldn't be the same without her.

She bit her lip as she began twirling a ring on her pinkie finger. That was an awfully good question. She tried to find an answer, but the honest truth was that she really had no idea how to read the boy. Lisette wasn't even sure if he liked her, even though that should have been pretty obvious, "I... I don't know."

Meeting her sister's gaze, Juliette's own clouded over. Well, where else would she be? Spending Christmas with Bill or some stranger would just be depressing. "Of course," nodding, she took a bite out of her crepes.

Minutely raising an eyebrow, she watched Lisette for a moment. Sure, all she knew about Zander was from her sister, but she knew her sister, didn't she? "Listen, you are absolutely amazing. And I'm not just saying that because we're family, Lis. He likes you." Tapping the side of her head, she grinned. "I know these things."

Lisette grinned at her sister, a wave of relief washing over her. She broke off a piece of the crepe, taking a few moments to look at it before taking a big, sugary bite. Christmas with Juliette and Julian. What more could she ask for?

She couldn't help but give a small, appreciative smile, "Thanks, Juli. You're the best. Really." As sarcastic as it might have sounded, the girl meant it from the bottom of her heart. Even if what her sister said didn't make her feel better about Zander, it still managed to cheer her up. No one else in her life knew her as well. Not even Julian.

As her thoughts turned towards the winter holiday, Juliette took another bite of her food, already thinking of the presents, both what she'd get (because one was never too old for presents) and the ones she'd give people. Out of the kindness of her heart, she'd get something for Julian. If he was having a bad year, a little pick me up present would do him some good, even if she had no idea what to get him.

Tilting her head slightly, she flicked her green eyes towards Lisette. "If," she began slowly, "I was going to give Julian something, what do you think he'd like?"

Returning the smile, Juliette's eyes sparkled. "Why thank you, Lis. Being the best takes work and dedication, but it is so very worth it in the end, if only for the compliments." Her smile shifted into a large grin.

Lisette bit her lip, "I don't suppose..." She tapped her finger against the table in thought, "You wouldn't happen to have the money to buy him a cello, would you?" Knowing her sister, of course, she would have more than enough. After all, the woman went on shopping sprees on an almost daily basis.

The girl raised an eyebrow, "Oh really? I'd imagine that with me being the little sister, doting on me would be the easiest thing in the world." A grin broke across her face, mirroring her sister's, "After all, you really do make it look effortless."

"A cello," Juliette repeated, raising an eyebrow. "The instrument? Huh, he's a musical one, isn't he?" She was beginning to realize how little she knew about Lisette's friends. "But yeah, I can manage it." Though it was true that she had no idea how much one costed, it wasn't like she didn't have money.

"That's because it is. After all, I'm just telling you the truth, Lis." The former Angelique grinned.

"Thanks, Juliette, really." The girl grinned widely, her heart leaping with excitement, "He's going to love it." Finally this year she wouldn't have to give him a present that was complete rubbish compared to his own. He had gotten her a flying horse after all. Sure a cello still wouldn't be able to rival that, but at least it was better than some cheap necklace.

Lisette laughed, "I'm glad to hear that." She glanced up at a clock on the wall across from her, biting her lip at what she saw. But the girl just smiled back at her sister. They wouldn't mind if she was a few minutes late, right?

"It's nothing," she waved an arm dismissively, but couldn't help but share her sister's excitement. It felt good to know that she was making someone she barely knew happy. She needed to do things like this more often. And with Julian in such poor spirits, they'd probably be making his whole year.

"Why am I not surprised?" Juliette teased, laughing softly. Tilting her head slightly at Lisette, green eyes picking up the minute bite of her lips. She followed her sister's gaze behind her, taking in the time on the clock. Turning back around, the ex-Angelique frowned, "You have to go back to school soon, don't you?"

Lisette gave a long sigh, "Yes... I should probably leave now, actually." She frowned back at her sister, "If there was some way I could stay longer, I would... But my professors this year aren't that compromising." She gave an apologetic smile as she stood up to leave.

"I guess... I'll see you christmas?"

"Professor's ruining everything," she muttered under her breath, shaking her head. But her sister was a prefect, after all. She couldn't just not show up for class, even if it was because she was spending time with her.

Sighing softly, Juliette stood up as well, wrapping her arms around Lisette, "Most definitely," she nodded, "And the time between now and then will fly by. You'll hardly miss me. Promise."