You and I can dance our way through it

[Poppy Thomas-Cappello]

The moment Poppy Thomas stepped off the train at Hogwarts last fall, she felt as though her life was officially over. The last thing she had wanted to do was up and move schools; her whole life was at Ilvermorny, and her father barely had any time for her as it was. It just didn’t make sense that he would make her move schools. ”Just for a year, popcorn,” he’d say. The sixteen year old was obstinate and petulant, and didn’t write her father for the first half of the school year in rebellion for making her move. One year turned into ”this project may take longer…” to ”We’re ahead of schedule, we can go back in July.”

But by then, things had changed. Poppy made more friends than she ever had at Ilvermorny - at least, true friends. Looking back, she couldn’t imagine her life ever again without Jasmine or Paisley in it, or Ari, Fox, Gus, Gooby, or Jake. Much less Matteo Cappello, who, it seemed, had made it his goal to make the blond Gryffindor happier than she’d ever been; putting up with abuse from her father and making sure she got everything she wanted. There was no way in hell that she would be able to go back to her old life now. All of this? This was her skyline. Nothing would be able to even brush with the tips of their fingers the height of the importance of what she had now.

It still all felt like a dream. The blonde had woken up early in the morning, the sun barely gracing the horizon, but she couldn’t have enjoyed watching the sun rise more than she did that moment. In her hand was a mug full of steamy tea…; she had a moment to breathe before she had to get ready, her dress hanging from a hanger in the other room. If she had learned anything from watching movies, it was that you barely got a moment to yourself. That as soon as you started to get ready, your time wasn’t your own and between pictures and dinner and greeting guests, it was lucky at all that you were able to use the bathroom. Natalia was making it as easy as possible for her and Matteo, so she hoped that wouldn’t be the case for their special day.

The blond slipped her bare feet into the bodice of the dress first, sliding the soft fabric up her torso before pressing it against her chest, Mama Cappello’s fingers nimbly moving as quickly as possible as she tied the corset strings, mumbling something about how happy she was. Poppy was letting her go on, because it felt as though her talking was keeping Poppy’s head level, as the nerves were starting to settle in like soap in a bubble bath. The seventeen year old momentarily wished that she was back in that tub, soaking up the rose petals and fluffy bubbles, but it was time now, and there wasn’t a way to stop time. Blue eyes found Paisley, as smiley as ever as some sort of animal feature popped out from her head, causing Poppy to laugh. Jazzy’s excitement buzzed through the room like electricity. These were the exact three ladies that she needed right now. Natalia’s cool collection and nimble fingers, Jazzy’s excitement, and Paisley’s love and compassion.

Poppy was thankful for magic at this point - even though she’d tried on the dress numerous amounts of times, today of all days it felt too big on her slim features. Perhaps it was nerves, perhaps it was the fact she hadn’t been eating as well as she should have been the last few weeks… but it only took a swish of Natalia’s wand for the dress to form-fit her tiny frame. She pressed her hands to her belly where the boning of the dress pressed against her skin, looking at herself in the mirror with butterflies billowing in her belly. The dress was even more perfect than she remembered; it was layered in lace with very slight beading, the top was a corset with a sweetheart neckline, and the skirt had a few layers of tulle that covered the slit in the skirt. The blonde planned on being barefoot in the sand… as far as a fancy wedding dress, it was perfect for the beach. Her hair wasn’t curled or in any sort of fancy updo - instead, she left it natural, slight waves falling down her shoulders. No veil, just a daisy plucked fresh by Natalia and pinned behind her ear.

Poppy had a few months to consider her actions as well. She had just turned seventeen in April, and now it was May 28, and she was getting married. They were young, but they were in love, and Poppy couldn’t imagine her life going any differently at this point. Everything about it felt right - almost like it was destiny that her father had dragged her to the UK for his big project, so she could meet Matteo, and become friends with the two ladies beside her, and have a mother (even just by law) that loved her more than her own father seemed to. Before this moment, the blonde had felt ridiculously lost, afraid that she was never really going to find her purpose in life. That’s how she always had been, of course - bouncing from hobby to hobby, spending time with different friends and not really settling down. She didn’t want to go back to that lifestyle. This was it - her lifelong love letter finally being penned down and sealed with a kiss.

Nerves were finally settling in, although Poppy wasn’t sure what she was even nervous about. At the other end of the aisle there was going to be a smiling head of curly brown hair waiting for her, and everything else was going to fade away, and it was just going to be the two of them on the beach. Despite not caring what everyone else thought about it, Poppy couldn’t help but wonder if a part of her nerves were due to subconscious thoughts of other peoples’ opinions. In the mirror, she straightened up and offered a brave smile, this was right. This was the beginning of the rest of her life.

Poppy took Natalia’s hand and followed her toward the door, nodding once with a smile in return to her soon to be mother-in-law’s. She was ready, despite the tingling, shaky feeling she had in her legs, almost as though she were going to collapse. She wouldn’t, of course. As soon as she saw Matty she knew she was going to float all the way down the aisle, being held down only by Natalia’s hand.

The door creaked open and music, which had just been a faint sound in the bottom of her ears now filled them, her cheeks flushing with color from both excitement and the sun greeting her. Jazzy made her way down the steps first, and then Paisley; Jake and Emilia likely already standing beside Matty. Poppy took her first few steps, Natalia holding out her bouquet, which she took gingerly before smiling at her again, catching the way she pointed toward something behind her. Poppy’s brow furrowed a a moment before she caught on, turning to face none other than her own father, Andrew.

Emotions flowed through her as she looked at him. He wore a tan suit coat with a daisy pinned to the breast pocket. He looked apologetic, and while Poppy wanted to be angry and scream at him, she couldn’t. He was there, and she knew, deep down, that he felt bad about everything that had happened, and she hoped that this was the start of a new beginning. Just like this wedding was going to be. He held out his arm for her, and she took it, putting her bouquet in her opposing hand as she looked up at him, leaning her head against his shoulder for just a moment. Everything had been perfect before, but now… now she wasn’t left asking for anything else. She had everything, and everyone, she needed.


Matteo Cappello
Paisley Carson
Jasmine Patel