We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the path we choose to act on. That's who we really are.~Sirius Black, Order of the phoenix •• Marwan was tired, like fall-down-on-the-bed-and-never-wake-up-till-the-next-week kinda tired. After an all-nighter at the office, all he wanted to do was sleep off his exhaustion. And he had gotten his wish right until Noor had called him. He had set up a custom ringtone for her like a cheesy teenager so even through the haze of sleep, he knew it was her.Scrambling to a sitting position, groaning when his head hit the headboard, he swiped the answer key and pressed the phone to his ear."Hey beautiful," he greeted through a yawn. "How are you today?""I

There is no good and evil. There is only power and those too weak to seek it. ~Lord Voldemort, The sorcerer's stone••January, 2009South AfricaAl'amir Belko woke up with a start, wiping a hand over his face as he tried to gain his bearings. Despite the Aircon on full blast, he was covered in a fine sheen of sweat, his body shaking–from what, he couldn't remember. Each breath of his was released with great difficulty he wondered if he was about to suffer a stroke. But it couldn't be possible, he was at peak health, despite the condition he was still in after the tragic passing of his wife six months ago.He had no idea where he was or how he had gotten there but as his hand brushed over the nightstand, he knew he had been here before. But, where was here exactly?His hand snagged on the desklight switch, pressing the button only to switch it off again when the light almost blinded him. He suffered from a headache unlike any he had ever had before and his mouth, it tasted like cott

After all this time?~Albus Dumbledore, The deathly hallows •• Noor sat a café, gaze on her necklace as she tried hard to decipher her feels. She had felt disoriented when she remembered everything from that year at Ecuador and she still had no idea how to feel about the boy–man–who had given her the bracelet. What would she do if they were to meet now? Would he expect her to keep her promise to him? What if he has forgotten about her just as she had forgotten about him? What if he doesn't remember asking her to make that promise to him? Eeek, she shuddered. Who even asks an eight year old to keep her firsts for him? What was he

It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies. But just as much to stand up to your friends.~Albus Dumbledore, The sorcerer's stone. •• Nadia was bone tired and weary of their dance. It had worn her out and now, she was just done.  From the balcony of their living room, she could hear her father rage and rant to their grandparents for her decision to call off another engagement while Khaleed stood like a stone, flinching at the vitriol her father spoke with as if every word was a lashing to his skin.  She nearly scoffed at his reaction when all that was happening was his fault to begin with. 

When you have seen as much of life as I have, you will not underestimate the power of obsessive love. ~Albus Dumbledore, The half-blood prince. •• Noor sat besides her father, watching the gentle rise and fall of his chest, the steady beeping of the monitors, a background noise that seemed to dull the white noise within her head. She hadn't moved from her position, ever since she had been brought to the hospital, afraid that if she moved or blinked, he would stop breathing. And so, there she sat, sentry besides his hospital bed, hoping that the angel of death wouldn't come for him now. They still had a lot to do, words to say and a lot of patching up to do. They hadn't been father and daughter for a long time and now, all she wanted, all she