August was drawing to a close. The long-shadowed days and cool evenings showed no sign of giving way to autumn, and the season began to wind down lazily as if against its will.

They'd come from London at the end of July for the regatta, and stayed on through the rest of the summer holiday, spending the long days lounging in cool, afternoon shadows, sprawled in the fine, silver sand, or swimming among the grey-blue waves.

It was a late afternoon, about a week before the start of term, and the Lisbons and the Dumbldores were among the last of the wizarding families to leave Southend, spending their final days of holiday indulging in the lazy freedom of the shore.

Albus' mother and Mrs. Lisbon had retired to the cottage to change for tea, leaving Albus and June lying motionless on the beach.

"I'm absolutely paralyzed." June managed, smiling contentedly and shifting her weight on the striped beach blanket. "You'll just have to go back to school without me, Albus. I'm never moving from this beach again."

"I imagine it will be rather cold eventually," he laughed, rolling onto his side, showering June with a fine spray of sand.

She laughed, brushing absently at the silver grains that fell into her damp blond hair. "Nonsense. The summer isn't going to end. It will just continue on, warm, sunny, sleepy..."

"And how exactly would I explain your absence?" He playfully flicked a heavy lock of hair off her forehead.

"Oh, no one would miss me. You, on the other hand, my dear prefect�" She smiled slowly, waving a lazy hand at him. "Why, without you the school would fall apart!"

Albus laughed again. "I doubt I'll live to see the day that Hogwarts relies on my presence for its continued survival."

"Oh, you might be surprised," she said, sighing in cat-like contentment. "But never mind. The point is that I'm not budging an inch� not one inch. And you'll just have to make my excuses to Dippet."

"Well, of course," he returned, mock seriously. He placed a hand over his heart, and began to recite as he would to a questioning professor. "'I'm sorry, Headmaster. June won't be returning to Hogwarts this year. You see, I lost her at the shore. She slipped beneath the waves, and next thing I knew, she emerged as a naiad.'" He paused, considering. "Only they lived in rivers, didn't they? Naiads? Which nymphs were in the ocean?" He grinned down at her. "You'd make a lovely sea sprite, though, if you don't mind my saying."

"Why on earth should I mind that? Please, flatter me shamelessly. I'm quite keen on it." She rolled onto her side, meeting his gaze with mischief in her dark eyes.

"You don't need any more flattery. I think you receive compliments enough from that cadre of prefects that dogs your every step."

"Oh, my. If I didn't know you better, Albus, I'd almost say you were jealous."

"I prefer 'protective.' I'd never forgive myself if you ended up with some arrogant, foppish, thoroughly unworthy playboy."

"And who do we know that fits that description?"

~curious about the meanings of the tarot cards in the images for each series? find out why the tarot card for full fathom is "the hierophant" here~

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