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chapter two
"INTRO TO THE BADLANDS"
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In the town Emilia's best friend was from, there was this pretty little café on the corner that smelt of fresh pastries and had a mural depicting both scenes from Jaws and David Bowie album covers. It was oddly a tourist attraction. Em didn't know whether it was because of the mural or the food, but either way, there was a reason the café was successful.
There was also a reason why the café in her town's train station was successful. Because (a) busy businessmen needed their coffee fix quick, and often they couldn't walk five miles to the nearest Co-Op, and (b) the only other "eating places" in town included two pubs, a social club, and an abandoned diner.
And, since the library was usually packed with others dreaming to leave their town, Em had no option but to trudge up the road to the train station, and claim one of the booths there.
The wedding was meant to be five days ago. Em had spent the day after the almost-wedding making her rabbit a safe home in the hidden hallways that the house-elves used. They were cool with it when she asked permission. They also declined her offer of a lemon tart in exchange for their help. Probably because the Ministry were stingy when it came to helping free elves. Definitely not because she couldn't bake for shit.
But, once Ripper the Rabbit had his own rabbit mansion, Em had been making an effort to either keep out of the house, or at least keep a distance between herself and her siblings. And it had been working. Her godmother Donna was pissed off about the whole thing, but she had been allowing Em to eat meals separately, at least until Mona calmed down.
Which would never happen. Em knew that. Her siblings all lived in a constant state of anger. And, being natural bullies, they found the easiest target, and that happened to be Emilia. Whether it was just them being rude, or blaming her for their wrongdoings, they were being arseholes to her.
She wanted to believe they didn't like her because they blamed her for what happened with their parents. Which was silly, because Em was only one, but she thought that might be the case. Em tried to think about other things. They just wanted a scapegoat. But, when she had to spend a good six weeks at home, it was harder to ignore it.
"Would you look at that!" said Sirius. Em looked up from her booth in the rotting café. "You weren't lying when you said we could meet here."
"I never lie," Em frowned.
"You did yesterday," he said, "when you said it was completely normal to take a rabbit on a walk."
