/𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐒\ [𝒔. 𝒃𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌]

𝟔.𝟙.𝟣

"Ahh, I always forget you're a lightweight," Artemis sighed, swinging her legs easily over the window ledge and climbing back into the room. She took the bottle from Mary and drank from it. "Anyways, I say we go to the beach."

When the girls got home from a short afternoon laying on the sand and dipping their feet in the water, Mr. and Mrs. Evans were almost done making dinner. "Here," Mrs. Evans said, "-don't even bother going upstairs. Everything's just about ready now."

Artemis wandered over the stove and peered at the pasta sauce bubbling. "This looks amazing, Mrs. Evans, thank you so much for having us." She was a bit tipsy; they'd brought the wine down to the beach with them, but the Evans's didn't seem to notice.

"Oh, of course, love," said Mrs. Evans. "We didn't want Lily to have to spend the summer all by herself."

"Yeah," Marlene joked under her breath, "that's why we agreed to stay at your beachside mansion for a month."

Lily elbowed her in the ribs and took a seat at the table, the other girls following suit. Petunia and Vernon appeared seemingly out of nowhere and joined them, hardly giving them a second look.

"So," Mr. Evans said when they were all settled with heaping plates of pasta, "-Vernon, what did you say you wanted to do with your future?"

Vernon cleared his throat, something he seemed to do quite a bit. "Er, drills, sir. I've just got a job at a company that sells drills."

"Oh, yes," said Lily, feigning being enraptured. "I'll bet the drill industry's really competitive."

Vernon nodded astutely. "Yes, it can be. Got to know your stuff to work there."

"And what sort of stuff is that?" asked Artemis, tilting her head in the I'm-so-incredibly-invested-in-what-you're-saying way she did when talking to boys. "Like, what if I came in and said I wanted the best drill you've got?"

"Well, that would be the Grunnings three-thousand," said Vernon, not recognizing the sarcasm in her voice.

She nodded, hardly able to keep a straight face. "Right, and what if I said I wanted it in pink?"

Marlene snorted into her glass and quickly covered it up as a cough. "Vernon, in your professional opinion, would you call yourself a drill expert?"

"Or an expert on drilling?" murmured Mary.

At this, Mr. Evans had to turn his own laughter into a fit of coughing. When he was finished, he gave the girls a half-stern look, but his eyes were twinkling.

After dinner, the girls all stayed at the table for awhile to play poker, betting with cigarettes, and finish their desserts. Petunia, who was helping her mother with the dishes, kept shooting them snide looks over her shoulder until finally Lily rolled her eyes and threw her cards down on the table in exasperation. "Got a problem, Tuney?"

"Well," Petunia sighed huffily, "you really couldn't even dress properly for dinner? You all look like you're on your way to a strip club."

"What, you don't like my bathing suit?" said Marlene, adjusting her bright pink bikini top to only reveal more cleavage. "I thought it was cute."

Artemis flicked her hair off of her bare shoulders and raised her eyebrows at Petunia. "Last I checked, strippers don't wear bathing suits. They're not lifeguards."

"Yeah, I bet you'd know," Petunia muttered, sizing Artemis up critically.

Artemis caught Lily's eye and they both had to look away to keep from bursting out laughing, but Mrs. Evans came to the rescue before any of them could retort. "They're young, Petunia, let them be young."