FLY HIGH, FALL BIG
Albus gave a piece of meat to the white owl perched on his shoulder. She greedily gobbled her reward and rolled her round eyes with a satisfied hooting, before returning to one of the high beams of the aviary.
The boy watched her fly off with a smile, then sat on the large arched windows. He pulled up a knee, let his other leg dangling outside, slipped the tip of his wand in the corner of the envelope and tore the flap.
His head leaning against the old ancestral stones, he began to read, savoring the tangy breeze that rippled through his thick black hair.
"Dear Al,
Since your mum is not yet back from the ministry of magic, I'll quickly send this letter before she takes up all the space with her recommendations! Our owl refused to carry the mail, last time, for there were too many pages ... No, just kidding. I just thought you and I should have a man to man talk, for once.
I will contact the Swansons, try to get organize for this summer. I think it will be good for you to spend the holidays at your friend's and find out a little more about the Muggles. Your grandfather will be so very envious! But I'm sure you two will have more to share after this experience!
Will Wendy spend her summer there as well? I'm not going to give you a speech about bees like your mother did to James when he first began to be interested in a girl, but I will expect you to be reasonable."
Albus blushed and looked up with an embarrassed chuckle.
- "It's not like I'm in love with her!" he said aloud. "That speech was already ridiculous at the time, and James was three years younger than me now – Dad, please. Give me a break."
The owls stared at him with big eyes. One of them turned its head backwards on its neck and hooted, knitting its gray eyebrows.
- "Sorry... " Albus sighed. "I wasn't talking to you."
Distant loud voices caught his attention. He leaned over to look outside. Far below, in the school yard, some girls were involved in a brawl.
- "Ouch, ouch, ouch ..." muttered the teenager. "I hope Lily's not part of this mess ..."
He lost interest in the fight from which he could not even grabbed a few snippets of words, put the letter on his lap and looked at the immense sight the highest tower of Hogwarts was giving him.
The flanks of the hill were dressed in soft green and the lake shimmered softly under the spring light. The air smelled good. Even the Forbidden Forest seemed less scary with some fruit trees in blossom scattered in its dark cloak like pastel colored pompoms.
"Hogwarts must be beautiful in this season. Quidditch workouts will be more comfortable than this winter, although I heard from someone you perfectly mastered the cozy-arse spell your uncle - that rascal! - kept a secret for years."
Albus chuckled.
- "Yes, and I'm not the only one who likes the spell! Professor Wood said it was the best thing he ever learnt in years!"
"Your mum has already shipped off your birthday present, but I had another idea for you. Fifteen is not just any age, and I wanted to take you somewhere. Just you and me. Would you be okay to skip the next trip to Hogsmead? I think we won't have trouble obtaining permission ..."
Albus paused again. Still holding the letter, he thoughtfully rubbed his thumb against his lips. He was quite proud of the manly line his jaw was beginning to shaped in, but he didn't realized his fine features, when he was deep in thought, gave him the poet-lost-on-the-moon look he was trying to get rid of.
- "Where do you want to take me, Dad? What do you have in mind?"
For James' sixteenth birthday, in July the year before, his parents had let him invite half of the school. They had set up tents in the garden and made the Trolls of Rotherham come. It had taken up three whole days to clean up the house and its surroundings after that. Albus was still shivering at the thought. James was popular and loved having a crowd of people around him. He had been delighted, but his brother was relieved that no one expected him to ask for the same kind of party.
A day with his father during the school term, a trip to a mysterious place that would surely be full of memories, a moment just for the two of them – man to man, heart to heart ... yes, that program seemed much more attractive to Albus.
And he was almost sure he knew what gift his mother had chosen for him.
This birthday was going to be perfect.
He settled more comfortably against the stone, pulled up his knees and was about to continue reading when the door of the aviary creaked on the floor below. Light steps climbed the stairs four at once, and a head was soon to appear.
- "Hey, Al '! I knew you'd be here!" said the blond boy with round glasses when he saw his best friend.
The new comer brushed his pants that were coated with cobwebs, took off his glasses and wiped them on the edge of his gray sweater lined with red and yellow stripes. He had blue eyes and an odd quiff on the head. He was just a little smaller than Albus, wore a braided watch bracelet and the laces of his shoes had been replaced by cans lids. His worn leather schoolbag, customized with pin's, hung against his hip, full of books and scrolls. He held under his arm his cauldron smeared with a pinkish substance and, in addition to the multiple ink stains on his fingers, he also had a nice black splash on the cheek.
Albus looked at him thoroughly, then smirked, a little worried.
- "Terrence Swanson. What on the Moon have you done again? What's in there ? Is it alive?"
- "It's nothing", assured the other boy with a carefree wave. "A silly experience. I got a little ahead of this term lessons, that's all."
Albus fished out of the bag a 7th year potions book.
- "Hmm?"
- "What?" retorted the other boy, looking all innocent.
He pushed Albus and sat unceremoniously on the windowsill beside him. He leaned over and patronizingly twitched.
- "Oh, girls ..." he sighed. "Just to let you know, your sister has just made Gryffindor loose 50 points. She swung a bat-bogey hex onto Alison Corner. Where did she learn that anyway? Professor Curtis was impressed. She gave us ten points for the quaaality of maaagic. "
Albus laughed at this perfect imitation of their DADA professor's aristocratic accent, then rolled his eyes.
- "During last break, my dad blurted out it was the spell my mother was best performing when she was James' age", he replied. "Lily spent all her time training… she didn't leave a single spot safe in the house..."
He sighed.
- "What did Alison Corner say?"
Terrence shrugged.
- "Oh, I don't know. Stuff that matters to 2nd year's girls. Anyway, it was beautiful magic - a little scary, but interesting."
He chuckled, sat cross-legged, placing the bag between them.
- "I keep thinking you were adopted", he added mischievously. "Between your brother who can't spend a day without showing off and your sister's dreadful personality, I don't understand how your parents managed to have a child so eager not to attract trouble such as you, mate. I don't know what you're doing in Gryffindor, frankly. You should be in Hufflepuff."
Albus gave him a slap on the forehead with his letter.
- "And I've always wondered what a geek like you is doing in Gryffindor! You should be in Ravenclaw."
They giggled. It was an old joke, and not a week could pass without one of the two launching it again.
- "Well, at least we know who is in Gryffindor without mistake", finally said Terrence who had caught a strand of blond hair and absently broke the forks. "Wendy, for sure."
- "The Sorting Hat wasn't yet on her head it was already screaming "Gryffindor, Gryffindor" like if it had been stung by a bee!"
The word reminded Albus of his father's words and his cheeks flushed. Terrence arched an eyebrow and leaned forward, scanning him.
- "What was that? This thought, right now ... come on, tell."
Albus squirmed, embarrassed, dodging his best friend's pokes.
- "Gimme a break, Ter."
The other boy puffed out his cheeks, not fooled for two pennies. He was about to say something when a cavalcade rang through the wooden stairs.
- "Al! Are you there? Seriously, couldn't ... you ... stay put ... in the co ... common room", complained the girl who appeared at the top of the stairs, panting.
She stopped, hung her helmet onto the ramp and bent over, putting her hands on her Quidditch knee protections to catch her breath.
A long brown ponytail swept on her shoulder. She wore the red and orange uniform of the Gryffindor team and had a band-aid across her nose. Tiny carbuncles shined on her ears and at the corner of her pyramid-shaped left eyebrow. She had gray almond eyes and full lips. Her bangs were plated on top of her head by a flat strip.
Wendy Philips was a bit smaller than the two boys and in fourth year with them.
- "Don't… you know ... we are ... supposed ... to be ... in workout ... now", she hiccupped in a voice full of reproach. "Wood just spent the last twenty minutes giving us a speech on the virtues of being on time and it's a matter of seconds before he gets on to sonoris and makes sure the whole school knows you're late!"
- "ALBUS POTTER COME DOWN FROM THE MOON IMMEDIATELY AND GET YOUR BOTTOM TO THE QUIDDITCH PITCH RIGHT NOW!"
- "What was I saying…" sighed the girl.
Albus hunched his shoulders and got up hurriedly, stuffing the letter and the envelope in his pockets. He rushed down the stairs, followed closely by the two others.
- "Why didn't you remind me at breakfast?" he reproached, racing down the steps at full speed.
- "I did! And I sent Terrence to get you half an hour ago!" choked the Quidditch player, thrusting into the neck of her sweater the chin guard which twitched against her face.
- "Sorrrrrrry" chuckled the teenager behind them.
- "POTTER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SPEND THE REST OF THE WEEK IN THE DUNGEONS MAKE SURE TO BE HERE BEFORE THIRTY SECONDS!"
- "Troubles, big troubles", the girl muttered between two breaths.
Albus increased the pace, took a tight turn and almost ran over two first years that let out frightened squawks. He threw them an apology over his shoulder, without slowing down.
They ran across the Great Hall, slowing down just enough to not bail remarks when they passed by a teacher, hurried through the immense hallways, got breathlessly to the other side of the lawns, tumbled into the locker room just the time to shout an "Accio Broom" messy but effective, and finally rushed to the Quidditch pitch, red, disheveled and out of breath.
- "POTTER YOUR HABIT OF BEING LATE WILL BE YOUR DEATH SOme day, ah there you are. I was starting to grow a little impatient", groused the teacher, removing the wand which amplified his voice. "Where was he? No, don't answer, Philips. On your brooms, lads, let's get started. We've lost enough time. No, Potter, no need for you to change clothes."
The other team members obeyed, shaking their heads. Albus was giving around glances of excuse as he got on his broom, but none of the players seemed to really blame him for being late –excepted for of his brother who gave him a flick on the nape when he passed near him.
- "Let's begin with a three against four", shouted the teacher from the podium. "Philips, you team up with Bones and Shacklebolt, Potter - James – you be the goal keeper for today. No, no complaints. The rest of you cover Potter – the other Potter, King, are you dumb or what? No Snitch for that round. I want you to work on group chase, you showed me the lamest game I've ever seen in my life, last time."
- "Yet we won!"
- "Sandeszki, had I rang you, I'd knew it", the professor growled, throwing back the sleeves of his robes that bothered him. He raised a hand, the ball in the other one. "Attention ... play game!"
The quaffle flew straight up to the sky, and then rolled on itself and plunged to the ground, followed almost immediately by the two Bludgers that had sprung from the trunk with smoke geysers.
All brooms charged forward, with the exception of James who remained hovering in front of the large rings.
Jeremy Shacklebolt, who was in his 7th year and the team's captain, grabbed the ball and threw it to Eleanor Bones, humming like if he was playing cards. The two chasers were at home in their usual part. This was not the case for Herveus Sandeszki who loved to protect the goals and kept glancing at James who was yawning widely.
Wendy sat back on her broom and blew her bat to the oncoming bludger, sending it in full speed in the direction of Albus.
- "Ha!" she snapped with a predatory smile, sweat dripping down her face.
Albus veered gracefully and effortlessly dodged the bludger.
- "Sorry, Wendy!" he cried happily, waving his hand.
Bruce King struck the other bludger just in time before it hit his teammate.
- "Focus, Al! If you have no more teeth, you won't be able to try my father's tournedos this summer!" Terrence yelled from the bleachers in where he had settled. His books were scattered around him and he wrote frenetically on a scroll in between two glances to the field.
- "SANDESZKI GET YOUR FINGERS OUT OF YOUR NOSE AND GET MOVING!"
Albus jumped when the teacher's voice thundered again and dived in pursuit of the quaffle. He was not used to the big ball, but he was aware of the importance of the points scored by the Chasers - including his brother - while he hunted the Snitch during the games.
And he really did not want James to have anything to gloat about, considering his brother had not yet overcome the fact his cadet had become the Seeker the year before, when the 7th year who previously held that position had graduated.
James always spit absolute nonsense about him when they came back home – Albus' late starts in the morning, the immoderate love animals and magical creatures alike vowed him (his dorm was often invaded by furry roommates and even the amorphous flobberworms themselves wallowed, drooling on his hands, when he gave them lettuce. The owls left him alone the rest of the time, but they never dispatched the mail without stopping to pinch his ear affectionately), the teachers' habit of comparing Potter-the-trouble-maker and Potter-the-model-student. Fortunately, their parents didn't believe a word his brother said ...
As long as he could stay away from him, Albus felt perfectly fine. He loved James but feared him just as much. As for Lily ... well, she was his little sister. You did not hang out with your 2nd Year sister when you were fourteen years, eleven months and twenty-three days old.
Life at Hogwarts was simple, easy, happy. There were no soulless professor - except for Mr. Binns who was a ghost, but this wasn't a point in this context - no personal vendetta or unjust persecution and it had been a long time since the Slytherins had lost their reputation of being the minions of the Death Eaters whom History of Magic class had once made mention of.
They were not taught much about the war. Not at least of what had been horrible, senseless, cruel, irreversible. They were fed the improvements made by the government and forced to learn by heart the names of the heroes, but they did not know much about Voldemort himself or what had led Harry Potter to go alone against him.
"Life and Combat of Harry Potter" was in the 7th year program only and Albus feared and wanted both to get there quickly. He did not particularly like the "oooh" that followed his surname when the professors were calling "Potter" in the Great Hall.
James, obviously, loved the attention.
None of the three children of the hero had obtained details from their father when they had discovered how famous he was during their first year.
Albus thought it was pretty normal. Actually, really cool.
Time to know would come. Later.
And what he loved most of all was the fact that his two best friends were Muggle-born. Neither Wendy nor Terrence had heard of Harry Potter before their coming at Hogwarts and they were discovering with his son the deeds of his father's past. These two were not curious - or more accurately, they had decided not to be curious about this very subject, preferring to remain alongside Albus and progress at his pace.
They were sensitive, loyal, funny and passionate.
Just perfect.
Albus hid a grin as he flew back up, the quaffle under his arm. He loved Quidditch, he loved flying and his heart was beating faster when Wendy Philips was involved in the game. She was strong, she was mad and she was - beautiful.
A fact he had only discovered upon returning from the Christmas holidays: mystery.
He whirled, threw the ball in the air and sent it into the goals with an agile shove of his broom brush.
- "Yeaaaaah!" Terrence yelled in the stands in which he was the only audience - with the exception of two cats, three crows and half a dozen spiders which were faithful fans - hopping and projecting black ink all around him.
James let out a muffled curse - he had missed the ball – and focused on the game. On the podium, the teacher raised up his eyebrows.
- "Thanks Potter, it's now or never", he muttered before seeing something else that made his blood pressure shot up. "KING FOR THE LOVE OF MUD THIS BAT IS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE USED AS BACKRUBBERS!"
Wendy giggled, her legs stretched on each side of her broom, her own bat on her shoulder.
Albus dived to the sand that covered the ground, pulled up his broom at the last moment and ascended sharply, tacking between the players of the opposing team to make them lose their sense of direction. He was one with his broom, fast, lithe, sliding with the wind like a comet in a water sky. Blood pulsated against his temples, but his grin was still growing. Merlin, did he love to fly. Although he was rather good in most classes - being best friend with a student as gifted as Terrence required from you to learn your lessons if you didn't want to have to feel slow and dumb as a snail - he never had enough confidence.
Except when he was flying.
His heart throttled.
He heard - far, far away - the teacher's voice. He knew soon he would need to resume his place in the game, but for a few seconds, he let himself be carried away by the speed and the imaginary picture of Wendy Philips watching him with her mouth O-shaped.
The image blurred.
For a second, his vision darkened. Surprised - it was the first time since he was riding a broom that it was fast enough to cut his breath - he slowed down.
The Quidditch pitch reappeared, fuzzy. Then faded away again.
Something was moving in the corner of his left eye. Something big and black, like a piece of torn cloth.
The goals, the wooden turrets with their colorful banners ...
It was ... a… kind of ...
The sun dazzled him then veiled again.
A wing. Some sort of a wing.
He braked and stopped his broom.
The voice of Professor Wood made his way up to his mind. He was shouting, but Albus did not understand what he was saying.
He blinked to get rid of the funny feeling, suddenly realized he had trouble breathing.
And then the pain shot out all of a sudden.
His hand tightened on his chest. He gasped, doubled over.
His ears began to buzz and he did not know anymore where he was.
Everything went black.
And in this darkness, where only throbbed the bite in his chest, a green eye split by a golden diamond was looking at him.
The last thing he heard was Terrence's scream.
TO BE CONTINUED
Now, this story is actually a sequel for "Dark as Snow".
If you don't want to know what happened in the past, go ahead, it's okay. You'll be deep into mystery and feelings. If you do go back, though, there'll be less mystery as you read "Bright as Night", but I can guarantee there'll be even more feelings.
Your choice.^^