under pressure {michael}

[wren]

Wren had never felt so old, she was under a vast amount of pressure- she was essentially running the house on her own Zach had seemed to accept that they were married, and that the four kids in the house were theirs, but he didn't really remember. The healers were still unsure of if things would ever go back to the way they were, it had been a powerful curse that took her husband's memory, there was no counter-curse, nothing to reverse the effects. They were simply stuck to wait it out and see if it would come back to him. It was exhausting, and Wren was falling apart.

She kept a brave face for the kids, they didn't need to know how much their mother was struggling, they needed some sort of stability in their lives. But Wren was exhausted, the stress had even given her four grey hairs. She had plucked the offending strands out, but it made her stomach churn a bit. Not so much that she was vain and attached enough to her youth to not want grey hair, but at the moment it was a sign of her weakness, her inability to cope with what life had dealt with her.

Sighing, Wren paced through the headstones, going where she often did when she had a moment to herself- the graves of Violet and her husband Jordan. Wren didn't have anything to worry about at home, the kids were in bed, it was coming up at ten in the evening. Sure, she had blatantly ignored that the cemetery was closed at eight, but she needed to be here. Wren paused in front of the headstone, it had been two years, almost to the day. It made her heart sink to think about it. She was no longer an inconsolable mess about the death of her sister, but it still pained her, was still driving a wedge between her and her parents.

Wren still refused to speak to them, even though she was floundering, raising four kids and looking after a husband that didn't even remember them. She dragged her hands down her face, her breath coming out white on the still night air. For once the snow had stopped, and even the overcast had let up, she could see the stars and the faint sliver of a moon- it was waning, it would be gone soon. Wren tucked her cloak around her before kneeling in the snow, folding her hands in her lap. Why had life gotten so hard? She didn't know what to do with herself anymore...

[michael]

There is a saying that people always seem to pass around, that things get worse before it gets better. But, at times, it seemed like all it ever did was get worse. The attack on the school, while having been a year ago was still fresh in many people's minds. He himself had not been in the fight, but he knew the affects it had on others and the impact on the wizarding world. It was hard to trust anyone now and even in his line of work he found himself questioning people. Whenever someone would step into his shop to purchase a wand or some other kind of service Michael couldn't help but wonder on what side they were on. Even when the young, innocent children who were just beginning their years at Hogwarts had come in that summer he had wondered how many of them would be corrupted by such dark desires. It was a sad thing, really, and something that the man always scolded himself for even thinking. He had to put more trust into people, but he just simply couldn't.

But, it seemed that for some the pain didn't just stop there. Wren had been through so much and Michael had done all that he could to help. He could hardly believe it when she had told him what had happened to Zach. He never would ever imagine that something like that would happen to the loving husband and father. Michael had helped his dearest friend as much as he possibly could, but he knew even that was limited and would not offer her enough. Now, it had taken quite awhile for the man to find his friend. He hadn't expected to find her here in the cemetery, but in a way, he wasn't completely surprised either. He stood there for a few moments, simply watching her and allowing her the time and space he was sure she needed at the moment. But, as that time came and passed, the man gradually stepped up beside her. His hand gently came to rest on her shoulder, giving her a faint squeeze before speaking. "You never did make it easy for me to find you,"

[/color] he teased faintly, simply trying to bring something of a smile to the young woman's lips before he carefully settled down beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders in a small, comforting embrace.[/size][/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[wren]

Wren pressed her fingertips to her temples, heaving forward a heavy sigh that seemed to carry a lot with it. Six month's worth of stress and emotional pain. It hurt more than she could say to not have Zach know who she was. He remembered her name now, but there wasn't any connection, he wasn't the same man that she had married, he didn't know anything about her or the kids. Oh, the kids... It was hard on them, too, Wren knew it. Poppy and Lucy were only babies, barely seven months old, so they didn't know any better, but Ruby and Daniel... They noticed.

What's wrong with Daddy? They would say. Each time it made Wren dissolve into tears. She just wanted her husband and her family back. Maybe then things wouldn't be so hard, the world wouldn't be quite so scary. Her stomach faintly growled, and it was only then that she realised that she hadn't eaten all day. She had hardly a moment to herself, and now she felt too exhausted to do anything more than just kneel before the final resting place of her sister and brother-in-law. She couldn't eve cry, she didn't have the energy for it.

Wren did, however, flinch when a hand was placed on her shoulder, she hadn't known anyone else was there, though she relaxed when she saw that it was Michael. Of all people who would know she would be here, it was likely to be him. Honestly, in what was easily the most difficult time of her life, he was more of a blessing than what she could say. Out of anyone he had been the most help, half the time she didn't even have to ask, he would just step in when things got to be too much.

Wren smiled weakly at Michael's words, she genuinely did want to be cheerful, but she was more tired than anything else. Tired and damn near the end of her rope. She didn't know what to do or where to turn. She just wanted her Zach back, all of him, all his memories, everything, so she might be able to get a single shred of normalcy back in her life... "You know me, never staying in the same spot for long," Wren said tiredly, leaning into Michael as he wrapped his arm around her.

[michael]

Michael had yet to experience a sort of love that he knew Wren and Zach had and he knew he could never come even close to imagining how hard this was for her. To have the one person you loved with all your heart simply look at you and not know who you were was beyond painful. The man was amazed, really, by how long the woman was lasting without completely and utterly breaking down and losing herself. She may not have known it, but Wren was much stronger than she gave herself credit for. As he quietly sat down beside her, his hand gently ran up and down her arm in hopes of comforting her. A small, light chuckle slipped past his lips as she responded to his little tease, nodding his head faintly. "Yes, you never one who liked to sit still,"

[/color] he added before gently kissing her forehead in a loving manner such as an older brother would for his little sister.

Michael gently rested his head on hers as he glanced up at the tombstones that they sat in front of. Even though she had never brought it up to him, the man had felt horrible when he had heard about her sister's death. He hadn't known Violet as well as Wren, but he had met her many times. He had felt absolutely dreadful about her death, but he felt even worse about the fact that he had failed to be there for Wren when he was sure she needed someone there for her. But, it had been then that he had decided to vanish from her life for the time and he regretted it more than he could ever say. Sighing softly, he gave her an extra squeeze before loosening his side hug around her. He wanted to ask how Zach was as he hadn't been able to visit as often that past week., but he was afraid of triggering a wave of emotions in the woman that he was sure would not be welcomed. He had wanted to visit more, but Neo was keeping his hands full as he did what he could to get the small boy to trust him fully and to become accustomed to having a home and having someone actually care for him. It was a challenge, but Michael wasn't planning on giving up any time soon.

After a few more moments of silence, Michael finally spoke up again, deciding it would be better to avoid the question that was gnawing at his mind. No, Wren didn't need to be reminded of her troubles at home. They could worry about that a bit later. For now the woman just needed a time to heal, to gather herself before having to face it all over the next day. "Have you seen the stars tonight?"[/color], he asked seemingly out of nowhere as he looked up at the sky.[/size][/blockquote][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[wren]

Wren rested her head against Michael, allowing him to support most of her small frame. It was nice for once to not have to support herself, the metaphoric weight, the stuff that was so heavy on her mind and on her heart, was still there, but through the contact Wren felt she was releasing some of it, allowing someone else to help her carry her burden; if only it meant that she didn't have to sit upright on her own. To be honest, Wren was craving contact- with Zach's memory gone his need to touch her had left. Sure, she missed more... intimate things... but she was a person who thrived on touch.

Wren needed to be hugged and cuddled, loved nothing more than to walk hand-in-hand with her husband, be able to curl up next to him when she went to sleep... With Zach's memory gone, he couldn't be expected to treat her that way- to him she was not his wife of four years, she was some stranger. That was perhaps what hurt most of all, she missed the intimacy more than she could say. She was sure the kids did too- Zach had used to be such a doting father, always willing to get down on the floor and play.

"Of course, there's always things to do and people to see," said Wren, though her voice lacked its normal bubbly quality. Lately, she just felt drained, it was exhausting, being in her position, completely, utterly, exhausting. Never before had she felt this tired or this... old. Honestly, Wren was still a young woman, she was only twenty-three years old, yet she was dealing with the burdens of a much older woman, her husband not remembering her or the kids- though she had the complication of the kids being younger, needing constant care, the oldest was only three, after all.

Wren smiled softly when Michael loosened his grip on her, but kept his arm draped over her shoulders, she did find a great deal of comfort in the closeness of who was arguably her best friend. She tore her gaze away from the stone marking her sister's grave when Michael mentioned the stars, and instead looked up to the heavens. The night really was unusually clear for it being January, she half-hoped that the clear skies would last through the day tomorrow, she missed being able to see the sun...

Wren had always hated winter, she didn't like the cold, detested the snow, and mourned when the frost put the final nail in the coffin for her garden each year. But this time around it seemed especially hard, given all that she had to deal with... Wren named the stars she could remember from astronomy class all those years ago in her head, the list shrank continually, she had never been all that good at astronomy anyway... "It is really clear, beautiful, really," said Wren.