The air cracked, as sharp and as harsh as a gunshot, as a tall man wearing robes suddenly appeared in the middle of the road. The noise awoke a bum huddled in the door frame of one of the houses, and as he looked at the older man, so old that he had a full, white beard, the man's eyes twinkled as he smiled, nodding his head in greeting. The bum, clearly startled by the sound of a gun and this old man, pushed himself up and began walking as quickly as possible away from the scene, carrying with him his over coat.
Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbldore, headmaster of the most prestigious school of magic in the British Isles, took a piece of paper from his pocket and consulted the street sign at the end of the road, then with the house numbers. A grandfatherly smile emerged underneath his beard as he picked out the particular house and walked over to it, commenting, in his mind at least, that his pupil had done well ever since she had graduated from Hogwarts, if the well-kept lawn and garden were any clues to go on. He slowed his pace as he walked up the sidewalk, right next to the property. There were toadstools growing in a nearly exact circle around the house.
Reaching out slightly, he felt a small, almost insignificant difference in the air immediately over the toadstools, as well as the barest traces of resistance. He stepped over the toadstools and continued walking, thinking that it was just probably a barrier spell meant to keep out things like sparrows, mice, gnomes, and other such pests.
The elderly wizard continued his walk up to the porch of the house and rang the doorbell, chuckling at the pure inventiveness of the muggles, to devise a system to alert you to a guests presence. There was a bit of shuffling heard inside, as well as a woman's voice telling someone to go get the door. The lock clicked and the dead-vault slid into the door just seconds before it opened a bit, revealing the left side of a teenage boys face. The blue-green colored iris locked onto Dumbledore's own blue ones.
"How can I help you sir?" He asked in a decidedly Mid-western American accent, reaching for something just outside the Headmasters field of vision.
Albus' smile widened even more, if it were possible, and spoke calmly to the young boy, acting with the confidence of a man who was exactly where he needed to be. "I am here to speak with Miss Violet Danergie, on matters relating purely to business." As an afterthought, he mentioned his name to the boy.
The door closed and there was more talking, the boy talking and then the woman telling him to open the door and show in the Headmaster. The door opened fully and the boy extended a hand inwards towards the front parlor. "Come in Professor." He said, giving a smile, the right side of his mouth slightly higher. Dumbledore continued his way into the house, allowing the young man to lock the door behind him.
As Albus walked into the parlor, he saw a middle-aged woman in dress pants, a white dress shirt and a vest, sitting in a comfy plush sofa, looking at a clover through a magnifying glass.
"Ah, Professor!" She said, delicatly putting the clover and glass aside and standing up to hug the aged man. After they had embraced, she extended her hand to a chair to her right. "Please... sit and rest yourself." She said, giving him a warm smile before looking at the teenage boy, no doubt her assistant. "I trust Americans know how to brew tea?" She said raising an eyebrow.
"The same way, only different." The teen said, grinning as well, an inside joke having just passed between the two of them. The teen went further into the house, no doubt going to the kitchen to brew some tea.
"I must say, things have looked up for you." Albus said as Violet sat back down, picking the clover back up and placing it in a nearby vase. "A wonderful home, and a research assistant to help you investigate your theories." He said, trying to approach the subject with some class.
Violet sighed as she leaned back in the chair, looking at Albus with tired eyes. "Please, Professor... don't bring up my treatise on the theoretical nature of magic. I already receive many insults daily from notable aldermen claiming that I had no right to challenge three hundred years of theory and magical law."
"Yes but-"
I realize that you are a good man, I really do, but I am almost at my wits end about the treatise and-"
"If you would allow me to finish." Albus said calmingly, his eyes projecting a soothing atmosphere, the kind that you would find when the day was overcast and the wind blew just right, sending little shivers of delight down your spine.
Violet took a deep breath, longing for the pine forests of Hogwarts, the place where she felt most like herself. "Yes of course, continue professor."
"As you may know, I have been saying some things that the Ministry has taken offense to." Albus said, the twinkle in his eye fading a bit, alluding to the dark times that had befallen the magical world.
"I must admit that I haven't kept up to date with the latest news, but this does concern the... incident at the Tri-Wizard Tournament, yes?"
Albus nodded almost gravely before continuing his story. "The Ministry is trying to discredit me and Potter. In fact, they are trying to put a Ministry loyal teacher in the Defense post."
"But the ministry has no such authority." Violet said, raising herself up, her eyebrows creasing in thought. "It seems as if they wanted to attack... you, and they are willing to use the school to do it." She finished slowly, realizing that Hogwarts would be a target for the Dark Lord if Albus weren't there. "What are you going to do, Professor?" Violet asked, her eyes inquisitive, knowing that the elderly wizard was always up to something.
Albus smiled slyly as the teen came back into the room, holding two tea cups in a tray. Albus accepted one of them with a smile as Violet took hold of the other one. The boy nodded and went over to the other end of the room where he began sorting various notes and illustrations. Albus kept one eye on him as he spoke to Violet in a soft voice. "The old group is getting back together. I was hoping that you would join, but that isn't the only reason why I am here."
Violet gagged on her tea as she heard those words. She wasn't part of the Order back in the day, however she was always told these amazing stories about Albus and his elite team fighting the forces of the Dark Lord. "Well, I... normally I would be honored but... I..." She looked back at her young companion as the sentence drifted off. The boy in particular spared only a sidelong glance and shrugged, almost is if he was a deciding factor in this discussion. "I'll think about it, Sir. But I make no promises."
The elderly gentleman simply raised an eyebrow at this exchange and smiled gently. "That is of no matter, Miss Danergie. I would however offer you another position, one that would allow you to, perhaps, regain some authority in the magical community."
"I doubt anyone in the magical world would like to see me Albus." Violet said, placing her tea cup down on the coffee table, settling back into her armchair like she was tired. "They might lynch me the next time I try to do a book signing in Diagon Alley." She smiled weakly as she held out her hand at the tea the headmaster was drinking. "We've had to start growing our own tea leaves, now that some of my more outspoken critics have started targeting Caleb." She said.
Caleb, the young research assistant laughed at the other end of the room. "As soon as they found out that I was an American, they shoved right off."
Albus gave a small chuckle at the American's dark humor before returning his gaze to the young woman in front of him. "Be that as it may, my dear Violet, I still need a care of magical creatures professor this year." Albus remarked, earning a stunned look from the woman across from him.
"Magical creatures? But Albus, I hardly know a thing about magical creature-" She began before Dumbledore spoke again.
"Didn't your treatise have an entire section on the cause and effect of animals on the nature of magic?"
"Well yes, but..."
"And you had in-depth studies of several creatures, even creatures that you 'discovered' in your journeys?" The wizened Professor asked, sitting back in the comfy chair, pleased with himself.
"Only as a side effect of my new view on the complexity of magical..." Violet sighed as she realized that at this point the conversation was moot. The Headmaster had won this round.
"Then I assume that you will be there for the new term?" Albus said, smiling his grandfatherly smile, almost as if he were painting it as her choice.
She hesitated, looking at Caleb again before looking back at Albus. "I get to bring the boy with me. No questions asked." She insisted, her eyes daring him to say no.
"I wouldn't have had it any other way." The grey-bearded man said as he rose from his chair and shook her hand. "The first day of term is September the first. I look forward to seeing you both there." He said, nodding his head.
Caleb got up and showed the headmaster the way out. The duo paused at the front door, where Dumbldore noticed a rifle in the corner, right next to the door frame. "Am I assuming right that you would have shot me, my dear boy?" He chuckled, the twinkle in his eye brighter than ever.
"Still might sir." Caleb said, his smile turned up in a smirk. "Just be sure not to ring the doorbell again." The youth then closed the door, leaving Albus to ponder the meaning of his words.
Whoo. That was a ride!
Please P.M. me with critisism, I require it to become a better writer, I use the flames to heat my house, etc. I welcome you all to read my story. As you can see from the description above, this is a Harry Potter and Spiderwick Chronicles crossover, with some Fablehaven, Once Upon a Time, and Sorcerer's Apprentice mixed in. Please leave reviews, and be patient, it takes me a while to write all this stuff down.
Reviewer Challenge: What is the relationship between Violet and Caleb? Quess right and you will recieve my full first chapter of Adopted Alaskan American (When my lazy ass can finally write it.)