Hogsmeade Tomorrow
The sun had set and it had started to snow, but the Gryffindor Quidditch team kept practicing until it was past curfew. Sora Takenouchi, the fourth-year seeker, finally convinced Piccolo Montague, the team's captain, that everyone was exhausted and freezing. But in spite of how tired Sora was, she quickly cheered up when she met with Taichi outside the locker rooms. He mimicked Piccolo's voice and barked instructions at her until she laughed. It was a long trek from the Quidditch pitch to the Gryffindor Tower, but she giggled the whole way back, only occasionally whispering to her friend to be quiet.
"…And now that we've reached the top of the stairs, I'm going to need you to run ALL the WAY down! AND back UP again!" Taichi gestured dramatically at the castle's seven flights of stairs beneath them.
Sora forced herself to stop giggling, but still smirked at her old friend. "Sounds like efficient training, leader. Maybe if I push you off, you'll stand a chance of beating me to the bottom."
Taichi's eyes sparkled and he leaned over the railings to see how far the fall was. "I wonder if I could pull that off? I could cast Spongify on the ground just before I hit it—"
"Taichi!" Sora grabbed his scarlet sleeve and dragged him away from the stairs. The Fat Lady's portrait was just at the end of the hallway. "You're incorrigible—" the girl stopped mid-sentence and her eyes widened.
"Koushiro would let me do it—!" Taichi also stopped and stared ahead of him. "Takeru?"
The blond first-year was sitting next to the Fat Lady's portrait and sobbing. He wiped his nose on his sleeve and then finally saw the older students in front of him. He rose to his feet, sniffled—and then burst into tears again.
Sora immediately dropped her smirk and let go of Taichi, extending her hand to the younger boy instead. "What's wrong, Takeru?" She gently touched his shoulder.
"Did you forget the password?" Taichi followed up.
Takeru hiccupped and threw his arms around Sora, hugging her tight. "It's not that!" he insisted.
Sora froze at the sudden embrace but quickly adjusted and rubbed the child's back. "What happened?"
"It's Yamato," he mumbled. Taichi and Sora met each other's eyes in surprise.
"What, is he being a mean grouchy-pants to you?" Taichi asked.
"He said he's not coming home with me for Christmas!"
Sora's mouth formed an 'O' shape and she didn't say a word. Out of all the possibilities, she hadn't expected that.
"That's bizarre," Taichi echoed her thoughts. "Look, he was always super excited to visit you for the last three Christmases. Maybe he's been Confunded."
"Do you think?" Takeru asked hopefully.
"No, he doesn't think. He's being insensitive and he made that last part up," Sora retorted. "We don't know what Yamato's thinking."
"I wasn't—I mean she's right, we don't," Taichi conceded. "But we'll talk to him and figure it out. Okay, little man?"
Takeru sniffled and smiled. "Okay."
"Is anyone going to say the password, or are you going to keep me up all night?" The Fat Lady in the portrait complained.
"Digital portam, aperite!" Sora recited, and the painting swung open like a door. The three Gryffindors walked inside, and Sora finally saw him. He was sitting in the far corner away from the fireplace, reading an astronomy book and listening to headphones. He didn't look up or give any sign that he heard them come in.
Takeru huffed angrily. "Well! I'm going to bed!" He stuck his nose in the air and marched up the stairs. Yamato turned the page of his book.
"You know…" Taichi murmured. "I know he's probably not Confunded because he's definitely just being weird again. But after what those Slytherins did to Koushiro—just for being a Muggle-Born…" He clenched his fists. "I wouldn't put it past them to gang up on Yamato too."
Sora inhaled sharply, unnerved to hear Taichi assume the worst. There had been an uptake in bullying and anti-Muggle behavior this year, which set them all on edge. Her heart went out above all to Koushiro, who was a frequent target and lived in the Ravenclaw House, apart from his protective friends. But Yamato was the most likely to start fights with bullies and get into detention for it—as if she didn't worry enough about him already.
"He's not weird," she whispered.
"Sure," Taichi shrugged and almost smiled. He walked forward and Sora followed. She noticed with a sinking sensation that Yamato was fidgeting and holding the astronomy book upside-down.
"That won't do!" Taichi swished and flicked his wand before Sora could object. "Wingardium Leviosa!"
The headphones flew off of Yamato's head. Yamato's eyes shot up and glared daggers at the pair of them.
"Taichi!" Sora objected.
"Hey man, can we talk—?"
Yamato was already on his feet, wand in hand. "Expelliarmus!" The force of the spell knocked Taichi backwards as his wand spun across the room. A group of second-years squealed and ran up the stairs.
"Yamato!" Sora was exasperated.
"I—" Yamto faltered under Sora's gaze; then he scowled. "Taichi invaded my personal bubble."
"Bloody hell, man!" Taichi rubbed his forehead and staggered to his feet.
"What part of Leave me alone do you not understand?"
"The part where you never actually said that, that's the part I had trouble with." Taichi stood on tip-toe to retrieve his wand. It had fallen in last year's Quidditch Cup. "Excellent aiming, by the way."
"I think it was pretty damn obvious…" Yamato's eyes flickered back to Sora and he finally lowered his wand. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.
Sora quickly looked away from Yamato's eyes. "Taichi, you apologize too."
Taichi sighed. "Sorry, mate. If you won't talk to me, will you talk to Sora?"
Both Sora and Yamato turned red and stammered.
"Y-you can't just volunteer me—"
"Taichi—"
"He doesn't want to talk—"
"Only if she wants to talk—"
"I do!"
"Oh."
"Great!" Taichi clapped Sora's shoulder and winked at her, as if this had somehow been his plan all along. "Thanks a ton. I'll leave you to it." Then he skipped up the stairs to bed, leaving Sora and Yamato alone in the Common Room.
Yamato sat down and started fidgeting again. "I'm sorry that I lost my temper. You must be tired after Quidditch practice all day…"
"It's fine. I'm fine," Sora replied. She pulled her broomstick off her back and laid it on the table; then she sat on the velvet couch next to him. She took a deep breath and spoke calmly. "Yamato, what's wrong? I'm worried about you."
"Oh…" He ran his fingers through his hair. "You already saw what happened. I feel awful that I hurt Takeru's feelings."
"You didn't mean to."
"No—but—I'm not very good at talking."
"I can understand you just fine," Sora insisted. Yamato seemed to relax at her words, sinking back into the couch. Sora reached forward but hesitated. It was much easier to touch Takeru's shoulder. "What happened between you two?"
"Nothing. I mean, it wasn't his fault. It was mine. He hasn't done anything wrong. I tried to tell him that. But he didn't believe me. He thinks he's been a bother to me, and that I've gotten tired of him now that he's at Hogwarts too, and we can finally see each other every day, but that's not true at all! I could never get tired of him!" Yamato's voice became increasingly frantic.
"Shh, I know, I know." Sora wrapped her arm around his shoulders. He felt so tense. "Yamato…I've never seen you so happy since Takeru came to Hogwarts this year. You smile a lot more often now. You're always together. I know how much you care about him. And he thinks the world of you, you know."
Yamato blushed and made a grunting noise that almost sounded like "Thanks."
"What do you want to do for Christmas?" she asked directly.
He paused. "I have to see my dad."
Sora raised her eyebrows. She was finally getting somewhere. "Is he all right?"
"Yes…no. He's lonely." Yamato opened his textbook and Sora noticed that he had been using letters as bookmarks; he quickly closed it, seeming to worry that she would read them. "It's hard for him, being the only Muggle in our family. He doesn't think he's good enough for the rest of us. I can tell, from his letters. And Mum just started dating the sports reporter from The Daily Prophet—they actually met each other way back in Beauxbatons—so Dad hasn't been taking that well."
"Oh." Sora didn't know what to say.
"He feels like if he had magic, then he would've had more in common with her, and there wouldn't be this huge chasm separating us. Things would be different. We might still be together."
"You don't know that," Sora said quietly.
"Yeah, but…it's still hard, not knowing that." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, he doesn't take great care of himself. He's a terrible cook and he never cleans. He just works. It's been hard for him since I started Hogwarts. He only gets to see me in the summers now."
"It's not your job to take care of him. He's an adult." She kept her voice steady.
"He might not be the world's greatest dad, but he's mine," he asserted. "I worry about him. And—now that I get to see Takeru all the time, like I always wanted… It only seems fair that I go visit Dad again, just for a few weeks. So he doesn't have to spend this Christmas alone."
Sora nodded and squeezed his shoulder. His muscles weren't so tense anymore. She imagined that he had been bottling these worries for weeks. "What does your mother think?"
"I don't know. I just sent her a letter…She'll be sad. Christmas is the only time of year she gets to keep me."
"Oh Yamato…"
"But she'll have Takeru, and she'll have her French boyfriend, so she won't be alone."
"I'm so sorry."
"It's not your fault!" he growled. Her eyes widened and he quickly softened. "I mean—er—"
She shook her head and let go of him. "I'm sorry. There's no happy solution and I can't do anything real for you. I wish I could."
"No, no. You did something real. This was real." And Yamato wrapped his arm around her shoulders, as if to demonstrate. He seemed to realize a second too late that this was unusually affectionate behavior for him, but he felt too awkward to stop.
Sora blinked rapidly, then smiled at the boy's blushing face. "Thanks, Yamato…You have the kindest heart of anyone I know, the way you worry about everyone. I hope your parents know that about you."
"Thanks…It's honestly enough to know that you think that about me." He finally smiled.
Yamato's smiles were rare, and Sora always felt lucky to see them. But his face was too close, and his grip was tight on her shoulder. Her heart was beating wildly and her imagination was running even faster. She had never felt so lucky—and so terrified… Then the boy released her and ran his hand through his hair again, and she felt as though an ocean wave had rolled over her.
"I'm sorry, Sora," he murmured. He was trembling.
"Don't worry about it!" she said quickly. "You didn't do anything."
"Right, I didn't." He swallowed. "I just meant to say thank you for listening to me. I appreciate it a lot."
"Any time. You do the same for me."
"Heh. I try…You know, I used to wish that I was a Squib. I thought it would make things easier with my dad. But I'm glad I'm not. Then I'd have never come here, and I'd have never met yooouuuu andTaichi and Jou and everyone else." Yamato's eyes widened as soon as he said you.
Sora giggled. "I'm glad you're here too! But that's a little funny. I used to wonder if I was a Squib."
He raised his eyebrows. "You? But you're the best witch I know."
"Oh geez, I don't think I merit that high praise. The thing is: I didn't show any signs of magic until I was eleven."
"Oh. I never knew that."
"I don't talk about it. My parents never told anyone else either. I never even told Taichi when we were little. I always tried to hide it from him. I was afraid that he wouldn't like me as much if he knew."
"Ah—I'm sorry I said I wished I was a Squib."
"It's okay! Don't worry about it." She kept smiling. "My father was also a Squib, you know." Sora didn't have to explain that part. It had been quite a scandal when Toshiko of the Noble House of Takenouchi had married a non-magical man who had been cut off from his magical family. Everyone knew the story of her parents before she even came to Hogwarts. People she met tended to fall into one of two categories: they over-romanticized her parents' love story; or they insulted her parents as blood traitors. The reality was harsher for Sora; her parents were married but lived apart for their jobs, and it took her years to understand their love for each other. Her mother presided over the Takenouchi Estate up north, home to the largest magical garden in the United Kingdom, while her father was a professor of mythology at Oxford. "I was always pretty good at flying so I could play Quidditch with Taichi, but Mother said the magic was in the broomstick, not the person—"
"You're amazing at flying."
"Ah, thanks! A-anyway, I think she just didn't like dangerous sports. But it was easy to imagine that she resented Father and me for ruining her social status. I thought the only way she would approve of me was if I turned out to be a powerful sorceress, like her…There were days I also wished that I would turn out to be a Squib. Because I thought that meant I would get to live with Father instead."
Yamato nodded solemnly. He didn't have to say a word.
Sora bit her lip. Her eyes felt misty. "I know that sounds selfish and mean to Mother. She's not like that. I know better now."
"You're the least selfish and mean person I know, magical or not," Yamato interjected, and turned his face away.
"Mmm." Sora wiped her tears away gratefully and took a moment to compose herself. "Thanks. I'm glad I'm here…But I hate all these people who threaten Squibs and Muggle-borns!"
Yamato clenched his fists. "Me too."
The children were quiet for a while, listening to the fire crackle at the other end of the room. Until Sora finally changed the subject.
"Will you be going to Hogsmeade tomorrow?"
"No."
"Oh…"
"I mean—I want to spend the day with Takeru, and he can't go to Hogsmeade. I have to make it up to him."
"That sounds lovely."
"Now that I've talked to you, it'll be easier to talk to him."
"Great!"
"I hope."
"You'll be fine," Sora assured him.
"But you and Taichi should go have fun. I promise I'll make this up to you later."
Sora laughed. "You don't have to make anything up to me!"
"But I want to," he said seriously. He picked up his book and started flipping through the pages. It was then that Sora noticed all the musical notes that Yamato had doodled in the margins. It made her giggle; Yamato was the most distracted puppy when it came to schoolwork.
He's looking for a melody to write me a song.
Sora winced and tossed that thought out of her mind. It felt wrong to assume something like that. She didn't know what Yamato was thinking. "We'll find something fun to do together before the end of the week, okay? Something happy with no crying involved."
Yamato grinned into his book. "Sure thing."
"God I'm tired…"
Yamato looked up immediately. "Right! Go to bed! I have to…actually start reading this chapter."
Sora chuckled and lingered on his eyes for a few more seconds. "Good night!" She picked up her broom and walked up the stairs to the girls' dormitory.
She was looking forward to visiting Honeydukes. They sold ingredients to cook your own candy, and ever since Sora befriended the house-elf Piyo, she had wanted try cooking with her in the Hogwarts kitchens. In particular, Sora wanted to buy ingredients for chocolate. Not the animated kind of chocolate that disturbed her for how lifelike it was, like in chocolate frogs, but the regular tasty Muggle-made chocolate, like the kind her father always gave her on her birthday.
Chocolate was special to Sora and Yamato. After they had those horrible run-ins with the dementors last year, eating chocolate made them feel whole and warm again. She knew it was silly, but she believed that the chocolate must have been cooked with love, for it to have that kind of happy magical effect. Sitting and eating the chocolate with Yamato was one of the happiest memories of her life. Just thinking about it felt like lighting a bright fire in her chest.
If she could sneak away from Taichi for one minute, then…
She could buy the chocolate in Hogsmeade tomorrow.