t r o u b l ing (Gabby)

[broadway]

Raychel was gathering up the last of her parents things. In the reading of her parents will, they had left her the house. Of course, that wouldn't be put into effect for another year. Legally, she couldn't own the house until her 18th birthday. She let out a heavy grunt as she placed the last box into the basement. Now all that was left to do was to pack her things into boxes.

Raychel slid down the wall, burying her head in her hands. She had no idea what she was going to do. Now that they were gone, and she didn't have a place to live, she needed to find a home. The most logical place was the orphanage, but her parent's wouldn't have wanted that. Tears flowed freely down her cheeks. Since her parents death she had stopped wearing makeup, for this reason. A sudden rap at the front door brought her back to Earth. She reluctantly pulled open the door to reveal...

[igloogirl]

Gabriella smiled at a clearly distressed Raychel. It was a Sunday afternoon, and she had already visited Angel for a little while that day. But figuring that Raychel would need her more now that her parents were dead, Gabriella had decided to take a few steps on knock on that door as well.

"Hey Raychel, how are you?" she asked, stepping inside as if she was already invited. Gabriella figured that Raychel wouldn't mind. It had to be hard that her parents were dead. Gabriella supposed she wouldn't know, but it did feel a bit like she was losing her parents as well, or at least her father. They had never been particularly close, but he had always supported her until now. But it was dramatically different having a father who nearly hated you to having both parents dead.

[broadway]

Raychel shrugged and stepped aside to let Gabby in. "Better. Or worse, depending on the fact I now have no place to live." she replied quietly. She shut the door and sunk back to the floor. "I just finished packing up their belongings." she motioned towards the basement door. Gabby had always been there for her, no matter what. They hadn't known each other for that long, but they were already close. Placing her hands on her knees, she pushed herself to her feet. "But enough about me. How are the wedding plans coming?" she asked. "Have you asked Safira to be a bridesmaid yet?"

[igloogirl]

Gabriella put out a hand to stop Raychel from switching topics. "Nope, not enough about you yet," she told her friend. "I did hear that you aren't allowed the house until you turn eighteen, so I was wondering if you wanted to live with me for a while." Gabriella smiled at the thought of Raychel coming with her. Sure it would be a bit weird if she stayed at her parent's home, but she had been thinking of renting an apartment until the wedding, anyway. Her dad hadn't been to happy with her as of late and Gabriella would rather have a place to sleep if things got ugly. Plus, Isaac was bound to help her pay for it, even if she didn't ask.

[broadway]

Raychel was speechless. She smiled at Gabby and pulled her friend into a hug. "Of course I would Gabby. But I would use my money to help pay for the rent." Raychel was well aware of Gabby's plans for getting her own apartment. Now that Raychel had come into a good sum of money from her parents, it wouldn't be an issue. Before Gabriella could argue, she held up her hand, as she had done earlier. "I insist."

[igloogirl]

Gabriella rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway. Surely she had the two most stubborn best friends that a person could have, between Angel and Raychel. Not that she wasn't stubborn herself, of course. "Well alright," Gabriella replied, after hugging Raychel. "But only for the months that you're living there," she warned. "I won't have you paying when you go back to school."

[broadway]

Raychel grasped Gabriella's hand and shook it gently. "Of course. It's a deal my friend." She replied with a smirk. Nothing seemed wrong at the moment, but her parent's death seemed off. "Gabby," she said, turning serious. "There's something I didn't tell you about my parent's deaths. The Minister sent me the letter announcing their passing." She replied softly. The Minister never got involved with Muggles unless they were murdered by other wizards. That part was most disturbing.

[igloogirl]

Gabriella released Raychel's hand rather quickly, hoping her friend wouldn't notice the coldness. She had been meaning to tell Raychel about the vampire thing for a while now, but hadn't really gotten around to it. Gabriella would rather tell her at school anyway. "The Minister," Gabriella breathed thoughtfully. "But what wizard would want to kill your parents? They were Muggles, weren't they?"

[broadway]

Raychel took a deep breath. "My sentiments exactly. There's something my parent's didn't tell me, I just know it. They were doing something behind my back, that's the only explanation." she paused, thinking this through. Her parent's could have done something in the wizarding world to anger whatever the hell killed them. It wasn't unlikely that they were involved in something. "The wanted to keep whatever it was that was going on away from me. They died to protect me from something." she replied, bewildered. She crossed her arms over her chest, not sure what to make of the whole situation. Muggles being involved in wizarding problems. It was too far fetched to believe. But what if it was true?

[igloogirl]

"Don't jump to conclusions," Gabriella warned. "It could've been something entirely different. Not many Muggles, even ones that know about magic, get involved in wizard's affairs. Whoever killed them could have just been trying to get to you. Or perhaps they just like killing Muggles." Gabriella sighed slightly. This was a difficult topic to discuss.

[broadway]

Raychel sighed. "Now that's just an entirely different perspective, just equally frightening." she replied. She shook her head. "You're right, I'm getting too involved. If something happened to them by pure accident, or by coincidence, I'm not sure. I just know I'm not going to let it influence me." she replied with a weak smile.

[igloogirl]

"That's probably the best idea," Gabriella commented, nodding at Raychel's thought not to let all this bother her too much. Obviously it was going to be hard, with her parents dead. But Gabriella had a feeling that Raychel could overcome this. She was strong. "Alright, now you're allowed to switch topics," she teased lightly.

[broadway]

Raychel stuck her tongue out teasingly. "Fine." she retorted. She plopped herself down on the only piece of furniture that had been yet to be moved to storage: the couch. She moved over to leave room for Gabby in case she wanted to sit. "When is your dress coming in?" she asked. She had helped picked the dress out with Gabriella. It was a gorgeous gold, for Gabby didn't want to go with the traditional white. Her pale complexion set it off. Raychel was ecstatic to be able to be a bridesmaid.

[igloogirl]

"Next weekend," Gabriella replied, sitting on the couch next to her friend. "I assume that you want to come, right?" It would be a fun weekend, between all her bridesmaids (except Jenna, who had to work on her own wedding plans) and looking at dresses. Gabriella found that she could hardly wait.

[broadway]

"Well, yeah!" Raychel replied with a laugh. It was kind of a silly question, but Gabby was just being sure. Raychel pulled her legs underneath her. "So, bridesmaids. Me, Angel, Jenna, Emily, and Safira. Any else?" she asked curiously. "And what about a flower girl? And everything else?" she asked. She hadn't spent hardly any time with Gabby, so she was still a little in the dark about the remainder of the wedding plans.