บท 11: Chapter 11 Jordan's Letter and More Family
July 20, 1991 New Salem
The Owens boys' birthday would soon be here and they didn't get a Hogwarts letter. Oh, they knew it was the wards; the aunts had made them stronger when the first fan mail came all those years ago. Now they didn't get any mail that wasn't sent the non-magical way, not even via phoenix. Kippy had told them to put up those wards as soon as she remembered that Dumbledore had one. Harry had a fleeting thought about what the school in Scotland thought not being able to find him. He could almost see the look on the old man's face when there was no address to send his letter to.
A week before his January birthday Jordan got his Hogwarts invite. They thought that shouldn't have happened since he was enrolled at SMI, but magic was quirky that way. They wanted to wait to read Jordan's until they were sure they wouldn't get one. That way they could compare them if that happened, which they doubted.
It was eleven days until the boys turned eleven and they were laying on the ground outside and watching the clouds float through the summer sky. They were simply relaxing after a long week of study, doing their summer reading and homework. Since SMI was an accelerated school they had plenty to keep them busy during the summer. They had just finished their etiquette homework, Luis wanted them to work on how to write proper letters and missives to government officials, and now they were free for the rest of the day.
"Hey, Jordan," Harry said as he turned his head to his older friend. "I know we said we'd hold off, but I'm bored, so do you have your Hogwarts letter? I want to see what it says." He was curious about that, and how different it was from SMI's enrollment.
"Yeah, sure, let me get it from my backpack," Jordan said and ran to the house to get the letter. He always carried his sports backpack with him. It had all his summer homework and the candy he tried to hide from his mum. Right now, it was stuffed full of sweets, books, papers and had a few bits of post. The older boy came back a few minutes later, envelope in hand. "I've already read it once, with Mum, and it is funny. Well to me it is, knowing that we go to a better school. Here let's take a look," he said, sitting down and holding the envelope out to Harry.
Harry sat up, took it and the other two boys gathered next to each other, so they could read it together. The envelope contained two pieces of parchment and they said:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Mr. Hilton,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
Second page said:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
UNIFORM
First-year students will require:
1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)
2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear
3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)
4. One winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings)
Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags.
COURSE BOOKS
All students should have a copy of each of the following:
The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1); by Miranda Goshawk
A History of Magic; by Bathilda Bagshot
Magical Theory; by Adalbert Waffling
A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration; by Emeric Switch
One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi; by Phyllida Spore
Magical Drafts and Potions; by Arsenius Jigger
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them; by Newt Scamander
The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection; by Quentin Trimble
OTHER EQUIPMENT
1 wand
1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)
1 set glass or crystal phials
1 telescope
1 set brass scales
Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad.
PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK
Yours sincerely,
Lucinda Thomsonicle-Pocus
Chief Attendant of Witchcraft Provisions
After reading the letters, the three boys fell to the ground and laughed hysterically. That was the lamest thing they had ever read.
"Oh my God, are they serious?" Neville asked, after his laughter tapered off. "What kind of acceptance letter is that? Who even send an acceptance letter to a student from a school that was never even applied for?" he questioned. That had always bugged him, what if they didn't want to go to that school, were funds still removed from their accounts? He was sure that a private school like Hogwarts had tuition, though it wasn't stated in the letter. He would have to ask Aunt Evie about that.
"Yeah, I mean seriously, it should be an invite not this. This is practically a demand," Harry said, still trying not to start laughing again. His shoulders were shaking with the repression. He wondered what Luis would say about this so-called invite. "Luis would have a fit if we wrote something like this," he said, echoing his thoughts. And the man would too; the homework they just completed proved that. While it was formal enough for a child, it wasn't a glowing invitation to the world of magic.
"You're right, Harry," Neville stated and then turned to Jordan. "How do they get away with this very vague letter?" he asked, reading the letter once again and shaking his head.
"Don' know," Jordan said, taking the parchment and looking at it again. "Mum, said this was what they sent every year. You'd think someone would have told them by now how lame it is." He was curious about how they got away with practically forcing students to their school. SMI asked that you enroll, if you didn't it wasn't their concern. The US Government did have a truancy office and if you weren't enrolled in any of the area state or private schools, you had to prove you were learning properly from home.
"Yeah, I mean, totally, there have to be first-generations that get letters from acceptable non-magical schools that show what a real invitation should look like," Neville commented.
When they reached the age of eight, all three boys received many letters of invitation from boarding schools, since state schools were restricted to a particular district, and they were all properly written as such. They showed what the schools were like, what district it was located in, what fees there were, what supplies were needed and how the school was laid out. This was a simple demand and nothing more. Maybe it was because Hogwarts was the only form of magical education in that area. Harry had to wonder if there was such thing as homeschooling in Britain.
"What about the families that don't have an owl? I know we don't have one. They don't give any other way to reach them and that's just bogus," Harry ranted, snatching the letter and waving it around.
"Mum says if no one replies then a professor visits the home," Jordan explained.
"Hmmm, I guess that's okay, but really would it be that hard to get a Post Office Box? Sirius and Neville's grandmother don't have an issue with that," Harry said, settling down a bit.
To the boys the magicals in England were just beyond weird. Now that they were reading this letter it confirmed that fact to them. It made the impression that their own school was far superior educational wise. It still had its downfalls and bullies, but it was far better than Hogwarts. This gave them hope that whatever challenge they would be facing would not be much of one.
"Look at that supply list, they have to pay for a school and buy their own books. I wonder what the school does with all the money they save," Neville said with a thoughtful look on his face.
"Yeah, Mum said it almost strapped her family, paying for all that each year. She said that Hogwarts was this huge castle, and though it was beautiful, it was cold and damp. And in some of the classrooms it was hard to concentrate with the drafts that would blow into her robes," Jordan confirmed. "So they aren't spending it on improvement to the school, which is what it is supposed to be for. They even have a ghost for a teacher. So they aren't paying for him, totally crazy if you think about it."
"That's another funny thing, robes, really at this day and age. Don't they know that they are cumbersome and get in the way of potion making? I'll bet you dollars to donuts that their professor doesn't wear his the normal way. He probably wears tight sleeves, and if he's smart then he would tell his students to do the same, or there will be accidents. I wonder if he or I guess it could be a she, is accredited," Harry asked with a shake of his head and a wrinkle of his nose.
They were starting potions in two years, but the Herbology teacher was giving them pointers on how to dress in that class, so they wouldn't be unprepared, and one of the first things she told them was no loose sleeves. They will be starting Rune and Magical Creatures next year and they were all looking forward to it, especially Jordan, he liked animals.
"Well at least me and Jordan don't have to wear a hat," Neville said, knocking Harry over and grabbing the fedora off his head. "Not like they'll let you wear this anyway, they would probably not let you wear a hat at all, what with them wanting you to be their hero. They would want to make sure your scar showed to everyone." He gave his brother a smile to show he was joking.
Harry got up, grabbed his hat from his brother and shoved him down. "The list says a pointy hat, so I'm sure I would get away with wearing that," he argued, then punched his brother playfully on the shoulder. Jordan tackled Harry off of Neville and the three boys wrestled around for a few minutes. The letters got crumpled in the process, since the boys were rolling on top of them. After they were done, Neville coming out on top, they picked the forms back up so they could read and make fun of the rest.
"Will you look at the few supplies and books they have? I wonder if they even learn anything in their first year," Harry said, reading the list. "I feel kinda sorry for the children who attended this school. It's hard to believe its claim at being the best wizarding school in all of Britain. Then again it may be the only school for that area. SMI was the only magical school in this district, unless you go to a private school. If you wanted to go to another state school you had to move. Maybe we're being too hard on Hogwarts." He looked at the supply list again decided that they weren't.
"Yeah, there's only eight books. I wonder how many classes they have," Neville agreed, reading the titles.
"Mum says they only have six classes and only take one to three classes a day. Makes you wonder what the students do the rest of the time," Jordan said as he tried to get the grass off his knees. "Mum says she spent most of her time in the library, but she was a Ravenclaw and that was expected of her." he shrugged his shoulder.
"One to three classes a day?!" Harry exclaimed in disbelief. "How the hell are they supposed to learn anything?" That was completely preposterous, there was no way that was the top school with so few classes.
"Oh, it gets worse," Jordan said, giving up on the grass stains that littered his pants. "They have Herbology four times a week, and the important classes once or twice. Potions is only once a week for three hours. Something about training up your core, or something." He rubbed his nose in confusion.
Harry just shook his head in exasperation, he was happier than ever that he and Neville were brought to the aunts. They would have been so repressed had they stayed in England. Here they were free to do what they wanted, and they got a good education.
The boys dissected the letters for a few more minutes until they got bored. There was nothing they could do to help their ex-countrymen from the poor education they were paying for. They only hoped that when Harry and Neville returned and took their positions in the government that they could change it.
July 24, 1991, Scotland
Albus Dumbledore was pacing his office. In his hand were two letters that should have been posted to two wayward boys, but there was no address on them, not even a country. The envelopes merely had the boys' names and the rest was blank. He had Professor McGonagall try twice to get the quill to write the addresses, but nothing happened. He already knew Fawkes couldn't find them; he tried years ago and the poor bird just sat and sang sadly at him.
He had done everything in the last ten years to find the boys. All to no avail, nothing they did could even locate what country they were in. He berated himself for not catching the Longbottoms before they redid their wills. Now the boys were completely out of his reach, that didn't stop him from trying. At least he did get the Potter proxy. Then again without knowing how Harry was being raised, he had no idea how long he would retain that position.
His search for the boys had caused many issues. There were many foreign governments not happy with him after that fiasco a few years ago. They were only trying to bring the boys home, not that they knew where they were or if they were even in the country they were searching. They had flooded every country that started magical schooling at age eight and were now in hot water with all of them. Fudge was beside himself trying to soothe their ruffled feathers.
Albus had followed Sirius for months, but the man was content with staying in Britain. Oh, he made a show of looking for his godson, but he never left the country. He traveled all over England and Scotland looking for something, but he didn't appear to be searching for young Harry. Albus thought that he might be looking for the horcruxes, but he wasn't sure. He was in two minds about that, on one hand it would be one less thing for him, the Headmaster, to worry about. On the other hand, he wanted Harry to find them as a test. Alas, Sirius was determined.
The one tea they had had was uninformative. Sirius merely stated that he was not going to look for his godson, because he had it on good authority that the boy was in good hands. He pointed out that Albus had no rights to the child. He demanded that Albus to turn over the seat, but the Wizengamot had ruled that the Headmaster would be proxy until Harry Potter turned of age and returned to England.
Right now though, Dumbledore was in further quandary. He was sure that this would finally find the boys, but it seemed that it was all for naught. He had no idea what he was going to do to bring Harry home. The Potter boy was needed if the prophecy was anything to go by, and he needed guidance. And being the greatest wizard since Merlin, —so the public said, and he agreed— Dumbledore felt he was the only one to guide the child.
Who knew what his guardians were filling the child's head with? Was he spoiled? Was he being raised as a Muggle? Who took him in the first place? Where was that dratted boy? were the thoughts going through the Headmaster's head.
His thoughts were interrupted by his Potions Master coming through the door. "Are you still fretting over those letters?" the sour man asked as he took a seat in front of the desk. "Headmaster, you are going to work yourself into an early grave," Snape warned ominously. He hated that the boy had put so much pressure on this old man, but then again it was not the boy's fault that he was kidnapped. Still, all this stress over a child…
"Ah, Severus, you do not understand, I need him here. We need him here," was the gentle reply as the Headmaster took his seat, complete with twinkling eyes that looked over his half-moon glasses. "He needs to be where I can help him fulfill his destiny. I cannot do that if I do not know where he resides." He sighed and looked at the letters again.
"I say you are putting too much on one boy's shoulder," Snape said waving his hand as if it were not a big deal. He had misgivings about anyone named Potter being the savior of Magical Britain, more so now that the child was being raised outside the country.
Albus stroked his beard and thought; he then sighed again and slumped in his chair. "Since we cannot find him, it is all for nothing," he said, putting the letters on his desk and looking mournfully at them.
"He is more than likely spoiled to the point that he would not be helpful," Severus sneered, folding his arms across his chest. He was weary of looking for that blasted child. He had been all over the world trying to find him, though he did get to stock his potions supplies with exotic ingredients.
"There was always the chance that young Neville would be able to step in his place, were that to happen, alas, we know not where he is either, or if they are indeed being raised together," the old man stated, still stroking his beard. That would be a problem, if they were both spoiled and thought of each other as family then neither boy would sacrifice their selves for the greater good. He was sure by the wording of the prophecy that that was what was needed. Now he was going to have to make plans to break up a family. His thoughts were interrupted once again by Severus.
"Then put it aside until you have some clue as to where they are. Right now, I have a complaint about the book list," the Potions Professor stated, pulling out said list and holding it out to the Headmaster.
"Yes, yes, work must be done," the Headmaster stated, taking the list and reading it over. It looked fine to him, but judging from Severus' face this was going to be a long meeting. Finding the boys would have to wait for another day.
July 26, 1991, New Salem
A few days later the Owens family was once more enjoying the comforts of their home town. They were strolling to the park so the boys could play at the playground and were going to get ice cream after. All summer homework was finished and Luis gave them a week off for their birthday. It was a few days before the big party and they were all tired of making arrangements. Frances was practicing her Legilimency and Occlumency, she was much better at it now. Jet was simply taking in the nice summer's breeze. Gilly was playing with the boys on the swings. Agent Mumford was walking away from the family, but near enough to shoot someone if they were a danger.
It was when they settled for a nice picnic lunch that Harry spotted the man and the dog again. They were a strange combination and the only reason they caught his eye was because the man was talking to the dog and the canine seemed to answer. Well, that and their description, the man was ragged and worn with sandy-grey hair and lots of scars. The dog was huge and black and looked like a Grim.
This was the third time this year that he noticed them, and though he knew from his father's journals that these two could be the werewolf and the Animagus, he didn't want to take the chance of approaching them. Besides, every time he looked their way the two would quickly duck out of sight, but not before Harry saw the longing in their eyes. After this time though, Harry decided that he would write to Sirius and tell him that he had seen him and his friend. So that night after dinner, he wrote:
Dear Sirius,
It has been a while since I've seen you in the paper. I hope you are doing well. Sorry, I can't tell you more about my life, I pray that you understand.
I wanted to tell you a funny story. We were walking in town one day and I saw a man and his dog talking to one another. Well, the dog didn't say anything, but it was nodding like it understood. Do you think dogs understand English? Maybe, it's a magical dog. If there is such thing I think I will look into getting one for myself.
I was told by a very important, yet scary, person that you are on a mission. I hope it goes well for you and that you can complete it in due haste. Maybe around that time I can get a dog like the one I saw in town. Do you think that would be a good idea? For me to get a dog that can protect me from all the people still looking for me? I am thinking of naming it Padfoot. Though I have tons of protection, a dog might be useful, if it doesn't bite me. I think if it bites me, I would have to put it down, which would be sad.
Hope you are well,
Harry
He handed the letter to Gilly and asked if it was coded enough. Neville did the same, his letter to Remus was just as vague as Harry's, and the only difference is that they were thinking of getting a dog for protection and naming it Moony. He had taken up writing to the man when he spotted him alongside Sirius in the papers. He looked so lonely that Neville's heart went out to him.
According to the journals, no one but the Marauders knew they were Animagus, or in Remus' case a werewolf, or what their nicknames were. So these letters shouldn't give anything away if they were ever intercepted. But, they should also let the two men know that the boys knew who and what they were, and why they didn't approach Harry, or visa-versa. And that they were welcome when they could finally come to him, if they behaved and didn't try and kidnap Harry. The boys really wanted to know the men who were Harry's father's best friends.
Death had explained the mission he gave Sirius, though the deity was slightly put out that Sirius had brought the werewolf into his complete confidence, especially since the werewolf in question had been so loyal to Dumbledore in the past. Jim told Harry that when he found out, he went to his godfather immediately, and forced him to have the other man take a complete vow of trust. Remus did and Death wasn't quite as upset anymore, not that he ever really felt the emotion.
"Aunt Gilly, are we sure the other guy with him is Remus? If it is do you think Sirius will bring him with him when he comes?" Harry questioned, his face went from serious and took on a worried look. "If it is, do we trust a werewolf around me, Neville, and you guys?" Since they had not had Magical Creatures or Potions yet, and it hadn't been covered in Magical Theory this year he didn't know about the Wolfsbane Potion.
Neville wasn't worried, he knew more about werewolves than Harry. He had done the research on them when he started writing to Remus. However, he'd let his aunt answer.
"Don't worry, honey," Gilly said, giving her nephew a hug to relieve his worry, "Evie says there is a potion for him, and she knows where he can spend the full moon. There are shelters here in America just for that purpose. Sirius has enough money to pay for that. She said it will be alright." she stated, hugging the worried boy tighter.
"Well, I trust Aunt Evie, so I'll stop worrying about this for now," Harry said as he broke the hug and went to find Kippy to mail the letter. Neville followed with his in hand.
July 29, 1991, London
Sirius checked his post box and saw letters from Harry and Neville. The only reason he knew they was from his godson, and Remus' honorary one, was that they were on paper and had no return addresses. They were also postmarked from China, and he didn't know anyone in that country. He gave a soft chuckle at the lengths they went through to hide where they were, but he did understand. Still he could see Albus running off to China to hunt for the boy, which was funny if you thought about it. The man was in enough hot water as it was.
The two Marauders had just returned from the States and were on the last legs in getting the ring horcrux. They were hopeful that the task would be fulfilled, as much as it could be without the diary, in a few days. The wards around that shack in Little Hangleton were hard and it had taken all this time to decipher them. While he and Remus were really good with wards, it took months to figure out that they were in parseltongue. They finally realized that they would need expert ward-breakers to get through them. That was going to cost a pretty penny.
He put the letters in his pants pocket, ducked into an alley, transformed into Padfoot and ran home. When he entered the house Sirius turned back to human at the door, wandered down the hall. He noted that Remus was sitting in his usual spot at the kitchen table, book open in front of him. It was the only room that didn't have a nosy portrait and the werewolf found it relaxing. There was a tea service on the table with Earl Grey and chocolate biscuits. He could hear the house elves were busy cleaning throughout the house. He was really glad he got rid of Kreacher or this house would still be a mess. These two were Merlin sent and the house was now in good repair.
The joyful man joined Remus at the table and poured himself some tea. "I got posts from Harry and Neville today," he said happily and then took a sip and sighed. It was good tea.
"Oh, what did they have to say?" Remus asked as he picked up a biscuit and nibbled on it. He was content that Neville had taken to writing him. He had been a bit jealous of Sirius.
"Well, I haven't read them yet, have I?" the dark-haired man teased and handed Neville's letter to the werewolf.
Remus snatched it, read it over quickly and sighed. He then turned to see what Harry had written. "I think Neville is on to us. What did Harry say?" he asked sheepishly, placing his letter on the table.
"Right," Sirius said as he opened the envelope and the two men read Harry's letter. "Well," the younger man said as he slumped his shoulders, "I'm not sure if we're bad at hiding or they're really good at looking. Judging from that last line, I don't think he trust us all the way," he added dejectedly.
"Can you really blame him? He has been hunted for years by people who want to take him away from his family. I would not trust easily either. I think we are pants at hiding," Remus teased, shoving his best friend's shoulder to lighten the mood.
They hadn't really tried to hide, but they really didn't want to be caught either. There was still a lot of tension between the two governments, after what Albus pulled a few years ago. He had tried to recruit them in to going, but they told him to bugger off. As it was whenever they enter the States, they had to go through some thorough questioning. They only avoided being denied when they said they were visiting relatives and would only be there for a few days, which was sort of true, if you count watching as visiting.
"I guess you're right, I mean yeah I would be wary too if I were in his shoes. We're going to have to think of a prank to play to show we're harmless. Did you see his family? That younger bird was beautiful," the dark-haired man said dreamily as his eyes glazed over. "I'd protect her any day."
"Only you would look at women during a stakeout. We saw the wards on that house, I am pretty sure the boys and their guardians are well protected," Remus chastised with a shake of his head.
"Yeah, but did you see her? Her hair was like spun gold, with red highlights, and that body. I don't think I've ever seen so much of a woman while not in bed," Sirius continued with a wistful look on his face.
"I guess we had better get our task done, so you can meet her," Remus answered, smacking him across the head, making him come out of his daydreaming.
"How soon until we get the ring?" the dogman asked eagerly as he got his head out of the clouds. "I want to get to Harry soon, and maybe meet his guardian. Their birthdays are coming up and I'd like to be done by then," he added, making sure not to leave out Neville.
"I think we can be done by the end of the week, if we can get the goblins to help," the grey-sandy haired man suggested. They had been putting off asking the goblins, because the greedy buggers wanted an enormous fee, not that Sirius couldn't afford it, now that his grandfather died, but they wanted to save as much money as they could for 'gifts' and such.
Now that Fudge was in office, the political climate was worse than before. Whoever gave the better 'gift' had his ear and he would stay firmly in their pocket, until a larger 'gift' was offered. Sirius could compete with Lucius, but there were somethings the only Black really didn't care about. The only person on the scene that didn't have to give 'gifts', was Dumbledore, and that was because Fudge was so afraid of him that he never asked.
"Great," Sirius exclaimed, bouncing in his chair. "Let's go talk to them. I want this done and over." He got up and headed for the door, and Remus followed. If they got this done right they would be there in time for Harry's and Neville's birthday.
The goblins were more than happy to take their money and the whole thing was over in a matter of hours. Now the two dogmen had to get to New Salem in only few days. That part was easy given magic, but they had to get clearance from the American Government, which meant once more jumping through hoops, only this time they were going to stay longer than a few days. That was going to be an issue, thanks to Dumbledore and his merry men, but like here money talked, or in the case of the States, favors did the talking. Sirius was doing some fancy footwork to get their visas done on time.
July 31, 1991 New Salem
The whole family was there to celebrate Harry Potter's and Neville Longbottom's 11th birthday. They consisted of the Hallets: Sally, Gary, Kylie, Antonia 'Tonia'. The Owens witches: Aunt Frances, Aunt Bridget 'Jet', Aunt Gillian 'Gilly'. And the Hiltons: Evie, Finley, Jordan and, of course, Maisie.
The tables were loaded with presents and food. The wind was blowing softly through the trees. Various cats were chasing butterflies or just laying in the sun, which was shining brightly in the sky. A sprinkler was set up to cool off on this hot summer's day, not to mention the cool breeze that Jet asked for. The children, with the two teen Hallet girls, were laughing and playing around the large green backyard. Everyone was happy.
Kippy had the day off work and was running around making sure that everyone had what they needed. Gilly cast a glamour on her to make her look like a small woman. She no longer wore bathrobes, since it wasn't business appropriate attire. Now she wore a nice floral dress that made her look very adult-like, albeit short. The glamour gave her long black hair to cover her rather large ears. She also wore a floppy summer hat to complete the illusion and made her look like a smaller version of the elder aunts.
Agent Mumford was at her office today, giving a progress report on the boys, there were enough witches there that they didn't worry, as long as the family stayed inside the intent wards.
The adults were watching the children play a game of magical keep away. Maisie was the person trying to catch the ball, while the magical children floated it to each other. At first Finley was worried that his little girl would be left out; however, after he saw that the others were giving her a chance to actually catch it, he felt better. If the laughter was anything to go by his daughter was having a blast. After all this time he really shouldn't have been worried, but the past was sometimes hard to shake.
Sally and Evie were going over potions for the shops. Evie had reopened Sally's old shop here in town, with Gilly's form of Apparition; it was simple enough to commute. Gary and Finley, being the only two adults with no magic, were discussing sports, like all men their age. The aunts were making sure the kids didn't hurt one another. Gilly finally got tired of watching and joined in the game.
After hours of play, they finally settled two of the larger garden tables that were pushed together, like they always were, for just these occasions. Chatter filled the air as everyone talked to everyone else. Food was passed around; silverware was clinking, bodies shuffled into more comfortable positions. There were two smaller tables set to the side, containing birthday presents for each boy. After a wonderful Kippy made lunch, the laughing group went to the present tables. They would have cake later.
"Okay, Harry you get the green table. Neville the blue," Gilly said, directing the boys to the proper tables. A colored screen was added to the background, just like every year, so they could take the pictures for the boys' relatives. The rest of the groups gathered around the two boys, standing, or sitting on the grass or chairs as their personality dictated. Gilly and Evie were armed with magical and non-magical cameras.
"Do you want to go separate or together?" Aunt Frances asked, settling in her chair. Her parasol held above her head, to keep the sun out. Jet sat next to her with her floppy hat on.
"What do you think, Nev? Together? Or separate?" Harry asked, tipping his fedora back on his head.
"Dude, you go first and then I'll go next. It looks like we have the same amount of gift each," the sun bleached blond-haired boy replied mockingly with a wink. He then waved his brother to start.
"You got it, dude," Harry said with a smirk, a thumbs-up and a return wink. He then turned and grabbed the first present off the table and started ripping the paper off. Anyone who had ever been to the Owens boys' parties knew not to waste good money on wrapping paper, it never lasted long.
The two boys only used the word 'dude' to make Sally cringe. She had just got her girls to stop using it. Out of all the Owens women, Sally was the strictest. She put up with a lot, but there were more rules in her house than there were here in New Salem. And one of them was to speak proper English with not too much slang, which was hard with teens, since they just did it out of her sight anyway. She had tried to get the aunts and Gilly to impose these rules to the boys, but they said they had enough enforcers in their lives with Luis, Kippy, and Evie that they needed to have someone who let them run wild. And the aunts were that someone.
Harry got: a red racing striped bicycle, some purple glow-in-the-dark spoke flapper thingy's —he had no idea what they were called—, a junior potions kit with a kids chemistry kit to go with it, a football, a soccer ball, new cleats for school sports, a few hoodies, put together models of animated dragons with paint, a weird puzzle ball, new plants for his pet snakes' terrarium and a new wand holster.
Neville got: a green vine decorated bicycle, the same yellow glow-in-the-dark spoke flapper thingy's, two carnivorous plant terrariums —one magical one non, both supplied with food— water pistols, a new violin case for band, a few hoodies, a book on famous mythical people who are real, a weird puzzle square and a new wand holster.
Everyone clapped, cheered and took pictures of the two boys having a great time opening the awesome presents. Just as everyone turned to go and get cake, two more presents magically appeared on the tables with a flash of light and a bang.
The adults took immediate control and ordered the kids to get behind them.
The kids all complied, but with their hands at the ready. The two teens in front, right behind Sally and Gilly, the boys behind them, and Maisie in the middle, crouched in a ball. Finley stayed behind the other adults, but at the ready to grab his daughter and run if he had too.
The rest of the adults formed a circle around the children, all prepared to fight. Gary pulled his gun and the rest raised their hands in front of them incantations on the tip of their lips. Kippy popped in front of the tables and waved her hands around the gifts to make sure that they were safe.
"Kippy is feeling magic on the gifts, but it is not beings bad magic," the house elf said, after examining the presents.
"So do you think they are safe?" Gilly asked, still in fight stance. "Does it say who they are from?"
"The tags be saying they is from the dogfather for Master Harry, and the wolf for Master Nevilles," Kippy replied, after reading the tags.
Harry and Neville got excited looks on their faces. They started to leave the circle, but Gary pushed them back. "Just because it says it's from them doesn't mean it is. Stay in there until we say otherwise," came the deep baritone command from the Investigator. "Okay, let's go over what we know. These two men are wand wizards, and that means they can't be far. They have to be in sight to banish something to a place they've never seen," he said firmly. It was his job after all, to know about the people around him and how they thought.
"That's right," confirmed Evie with a nod. She started to relax, since she felt it was going to be okay. But the Owens family needed to do this to tighten any bond they were going to have with the two mischievous men. A small smile played on her lips as she saw romance with the two younger adults. She would be keeping that to herself.
"So, what? They're watching us right now? Should we get the kids in the house?" Sally started to panic, though she knew about the boys' godfathers, she didn't know what they were like in person. What she read in the newspapers was conflicting. In one article Sirius Black was an upstanding citizen, in another he was a philanderer. She didn't know what to think, and she wasn't sure she wanted him around her sister. Gilly had enough bad men in her life; she really didn't need someone who had little respect for women.
Jet noticing Evie relax, calmed herself down, her hands fell to her side and she shared a look with her sister, who also relaxed. They stepped back and let their nieces handle it.
Gilly was having none of it. "Come out and face us!" she yelled into the trees as her hair whipped around her head. The breeze increased and soon every bit of paper was being thrown around the yard.
Two sheepish men materialized by the nearest tree, arms up in surrender. "We didn't mean to frighten anyone. It was a joke," the dark-haired one said with a weak chuckle.
"We are very sorry. The prank was not taken as it was meant. Truly we meant, and mean, no harm," the sandy-grey haired one said in a very placating voice.
"Wizards are so stupid," Gilly huffed, but lowered her hands and canceled the wind.
"Sorry," the dark-haired man said sheepishly.
Kippy snorted and started snapping her fingers to clean up the papers. She popped around the yard and straightened up the fallen items.
"You know better than anyone that the boys are being hunted," the youngest aunt continued. "Why, in hell, would you think it would be a good idea to surprise them?" she snapped her question, still angry.
"Honestly, we didn't think you would react like that." Sirius said, shuffling his feet and looking awkward.
"Idiot," Sally said, also relaxing, but still keeping the over-excited boys from running to the men they considered family.
"Okay, okay, we were stupid. Can we all get over that and let me hug my godson?" Sirius asked, eyes greedily taking in the young black-haired, green-eyed wizard that was being held back.
"Honey, the wards won't let him in if it is not him. Remember we set them up to hex anyone in disguise?" Jet reminded Gilly, and therefore everyone else, gently placed a hand on her arm. "They also won't let him in if he wants to kidnap the boys."
A collective sigh ran through the group. Weapons disappeared and the circle opened. But before the boys could go and greet the two men, Gary held up his hands. "If I reckon correctly, they're not inside the wards yet. Best let them come in, before you run off."
Sirius and Remus stepped into the wards and since they had no ill intent nothing happened. Had they not been them, or had they been under a mind-altering curse or potion, the wards would have attacked and they would either have been thrown out or in vast amounts of pain. It depended on if their will was their own.
Seeing the two men unharmed Gary lowered his hand and the boys were off like a shot, the other kids followed more slowly. The men opened their arms and Harry flew to Sirius and Neville flew to Remus.
There was a great deal of hugging, crying, all four children clamoring with questions and two beaming men answering them as best they could. After ten minutes of noisy rug-rats, everyone settled at the tables. All of the kids were eager to know these two men they had only seen in the papers, well Sirius, but they knew about Remus from Harry and Neville.
"How did you find us?" Harry asked, sitting across from Sirius, Gilly by his side.
"With my godfather bond, it's…" Sirius started to answer, but was interrupted by Frances, who was sitting next to Neville.
"We know what it is, we just didn't know you had done the ritual," she said, smirk playing on her face as she relaxed the calming atmosphere. Now that most of the tension was gone, they could just talk.
"Why won't anyone ever let me explain that?" the Animagus mock cried, laying his head on the table in fake tears.
"Poor Padfoot, no one will let you show off the little knowledge you have," Remus said, patting his friend a little too hard on the back, earning a glare from said friend and making everyone chuckle.
"So, now that we know you guys are alright, let's introduce everyone," Finley said. And so they went around the table. Sirius and Remus went first because there were only two of them, then the Owens women, then the Hallets, then the Hiltons. Of course everyone already knew Harry and Neville.
"Hey, you forgot Aunt Kippy," Harry said, indignant for his elf aunt. They had taken to calling her that, because all the other females in the house had that title, even Evie.
"No we didn't, sweetie, she can introduce herself," Gilly said, knocking off his hat. He gave her a glare while the rest of the table laughed. He grabbed his hat a shoved it on his head, and inched away from his playful aunt.
Kippy chose that moment to pop in, her glamour still on. "I is being Kippy, yous are very bad dogs," the little elf squeaked as she stomped her foot. "Yous is scaring the young Masters and Missies. Bad, Bad Doggies," she said, pointing her fingers at the abashed men. "Yous better be being lucky Kippy is not taking newspapers to your naughty noses." Everyone laughed and the last of the tension left the air, which is what Kippy wanted.
The two men stared in awe at the rather bizarre house elf. They had never heard of, never mind seen, an elf act or look the way this one was. The only reason they could tell that this tiny looking woman was a house elf was the squeaky voice and the way she talked. They looked around at the magical people around the table and saw they were all used to this strange creature. They then knew they better tread lightly and treat her as part of the family.
"Sorry, ummm, Kippy was it? Yes, sorry, we didn't mean to scare anyone. You were all having such fun and we wanted to join," Sirius said, not used to talking to a house elf that looked human.
"Kippy is being knowing that, that is whys Kippy is not being smacking bad doggies on theirs noses. Yous better behaves or Kippy wills makes sure you get no cake and puddings," Kippy said with the stern look still on her magically disguised face. Then she turned to the witches and said, "Kippy is being having stuffs to do. Kippy wills come back and helps later."
"Thanks for the spoke thingies, Aunt Kippy," Harry said, confusing his godfather even more.
"Yeah, thanks, Aunt Kippy," intoned Neville happily.
"Yous is being very welcomes, Little Masters," Kippy said with a cheerful smile and a nod of her hat covered head. "Kippy has to be going now." And with that she popped away.
"So, Harry, do you want to see what your present is?" Sirius asked, taking his attention away from the weirdness.
"Oh yeah, I guess we kinda forgot about them in all the excitement," Harry said, running to grab the two presents. The gifts were small and narrow and felt like a small mirrors, which he sincerely hoped they weren't. He carefully ran back to the table, handed Neville his and the two tore open the presents. "Ummm, mirrors, well ummm, that's very nice of you," he hedged, trying to keep the confusion and disappointment out of his tone. They were boys after all. What did they need with mirrors?
Sirius fell down laughing at the boys attempts to look appreciative. Remus was more sedate in his amusement and simple chuckled. After a minute, he pulled Padfoot up and cuffed him on the side of the head, noticing the affronted looks on the boys' faces.
"They are magical calling mirrors. Like cell phones," Remus explained, after Sirius pulled himself together. Being a werewolf meant one could find little work in the Wizarding World of Britain, so he did most of his jobs in the Muggle World and was up-to-date on the latest technology.
"Oh, neat. How do they work?" Neville said, looking at the mirror with new appreciation. The rest of the children got up and moved behind the two boys so they could see.
"You just call the name of the person you want to talk to and your name will show up in their mirror. They say your name and you two can talk. James and I used them all the time when we were in separate detentions," Sirius explained, a small reminiscing smile on his face.
"That is sooo cool," Harry said and immediately called Neville's name. The two played with the mirrors and showed their families, everyone was appropriately excited with this new form of communication. This went on for about five minutes.
"Okay, put them away now and let's eat some of Kippy's delightful cake," Jet said, calling a halt to the fun.
Happy Birthday was sung, cake was eaten, more games were played, the adults talked of nonessential things, not wanting to talk about the heavy stuff until tomorrow, and a good night was had by all. The Hiltons soon went home. The Hallets were staying at the house. Moony and Padfoot were in a motel for the next few days. Plans were made to meet up the next day. Everyone settled for the night happy with the way things turned out, frightening moment notwithstanding.
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