This morning started out like every morning for Ms. Harriet Haverty, her coffee she had made back at her apartment was cold by the time she reached the bus stop and her feet ached because of the heels she was forced to wear to work. She took a sip of her lukewarm coffee brushing strands of brown hair back into her hastily made bun as she looked down the street for the bus. Several other people were already at the bus stop waiting with her and normally she didn't pay attention to them but one man caught her eye on this particular day.
He wore what looked like a bathrobe cinched up tight around his waist that was a deep maroon color and had lace around the cuffs. The image looked even more ridiculous because he held a brief case in one hand and had on black dress shoes that were quite normal. Harriet looked the man over briefly but was forced to divert her eyes when he turned and caught her staring. To her surprise, he shuffled past a few people and came to stand right next to her.
"Did you not hear the news?" he asked in a low voice keeping his eyes forward.
Harriet looked at the man in wonder and huffed, "No, and frankly I don't know who you are so if you please keep to yourself about it."
A few faces turned and looked at their direction in curiosity. The man opened his mouth to say more but thought better of it and closed it returning the silence to the bus stop. Harriet felt uneasy standing next to the man until she heard the familiar rumble of the bus climbing up the hill and she was shuffled into the familiarity of her normal commute once again.
Finally reaching her desk, she set her purse down and promptly threw her now stale coffee into the trash bin that stood next to the wall. Harriett was unfortunate enough to have the desk right by the break room so whenever someone made a smelly lunch she usually went home smelling like that person's left overs. She also had the unfortunate luck of working for the most unpleasant man in the company, Mr. Dursley.
Thankfully, he seemed to be in a good mood today when he came into the office. She could tell this was the case by the fact that he barely said a hello and went straight into his office and closed the door. Must have been his big order of drills that kept him distracted which was fine by her. Harriett turned on her computer and started to settle into her morning routine of scheduling and answering phone calls when a loud thump came from the break room. Harriett jumped and looked up in the direction of the window that filled most of the wall of the break room. She could see several people standing there with their coffee mugs loitering about the window.
Looking over her shoulder in the direction of Mr. Dursley's office, Harriett noticed that his door was still closed so she pushed back from her desk. She grabbed her empty "Hang in there" cat coffee mug as a pretense and walked in the direction of the break room casually.
"Hello there!" She called brightly to those milling about the window as she reached over for the coffee pot filling up her mug. The others didn't seem to notice her, but one man who worked two desks down from her looked in her direction.
"Harriett, you've got to come take a look at this…the owls, they've gone mad"
"Owls?" Harriett wondered aloud walking over with her coffee mug held in both hands. She stopped next to the man and peered out at the bright sunshine streaming through the window allowing her eyes to take a few moments to adjust to the brightness. Then she saw it. Owls, hundreds of them in all different colors, flapping about in the trees and in the skies all chattering to each other filling the world with sound. So many owls filled the sky that some were being knocked off course and another owl flapped into the window righting itself again.
Harriett's stomach dropped as her hands began to quake sending ripples through her coffee. The man didn't take notice of her reaction and continued speaking.
"On my way to work I saw a lot of people dressed up all funny like too, what do you think it means Harriett?"
Harriett didn't want to think what it meant, she simply left the question unanswered and returned to her desk with her coffee mug trying to compose herself. The man at the bus stop was easy enough to ignore, there were always people who were eccentric, but the owls added a whole new level to what this could mean.
Harriett was so deep in thought she almost missed Mr. Dursley walk out of his office with a determined look on his face. She could tell he was on the warpath and was looking for someone to yell at so she stayed quiet as he passed her desk with out a word to her. It was a relief not to be on his list this morning because Harriett didn't think she could have handled it.
She continued to try to get work done until Mr. Dursley returned about an hour later. He looked troubled this time but as he was passing her desk he called out to her informally.
"Do not let anyone disturb me this afternoon."
"Yes, Mr. Dursley." Harriett called after him right as he reached his office door and promptly shut it on her reply. She knew this was as best a chance as she would ever get to leave early so she gathered up her things and briskly walked out. Do not disturb meant do not disturb after all.
Back out on the street she began to breathe a little easier as she walked down the familiar sidewalk listening to the sounds of the city. All the sounds were familiar despite the swarms of owls that seemed to be flying over head and she ducked into one of her favorite little parks to sit down on a park bench. Setting her purse down beside her she relaxed against the back of the bench until she felt a lump and heard a tiny squawk of protest.
Harriett jumped up and looked down at the park bench to find a tiny gray owl with ruffled feathers staring up at her with an annoyed expression. It squawked out another protest and held out its leg to her dutifully. Almost by reflex Harriett removed the tiny scroll from its leg and the owl flew off back into the sky to join the other owls.
Holding the scroll in her trembling hands, Harriett unrolled it to find words written in beautiful ink lettering. She already had a notion of who had written it just by the exquisite penmanship.
"I need to speak with you right away, it is urgent." The letter read.
Looking down to the bottom of the page her suspicions were confirmed, it was signed, "Professor McGonagall"
Harriett returned from work later on that evening distraught. The letter she had received from the owl that morning had weighed on her mind all day and she had not been able to concentrate on her work. The letter was vague about the meeting time so that could only mean Professor McGonagall was going to pop in whenever she pleased. Harriet had been very careful to make sure her life was free of all things magical so a witch who just happen to apparate and have a chat with her was quite unwelcome. However, Professor McGonagall was not someone you said no to.
All of Harriett's fears seemed to come to a head when she reached the top of the stairs and turned left down the creaky hallway of the old apartment building. She stood in front of the simple brown door that held the numbers of her apartment hesitating before pulling out her keys to open it. Was she going to find a severe looking Professor McGonagall standing in the middle of her living room? Maybe she had been kind enough to wash the dishes in the kitchen while she waited.
Pushing the door open slowly, Harriett walked through to her apartment and deposited her keys on a side table that stood by he door. Most of the lights were on and a faint muffling sound was coming from the kitchen. "I'm home" she called out to the quiet apartment trying to keep up the pretense that everything was normal.
"Oh, Mrs. Haverty! Welcome home!" called out a chipper voice in the direction of the kitchen as a smiling round face popped itself around the corner.
Harriett smiled at her nanny and set down her purse on the table before walking towards her. She had hired Jillian to help out during the day while she worked. It wasn't the most ideal situation for her, but in order for her to continue working it was the only option. It was something that had been forced upon her having no help from any family because of the decision she had made to raise a child with out a father.
The kitchen was small and cozy with white linoleum tiles on the floor and white cabinets to match. Everything looked sterile in the bright fluorescent light above, but it was still home. In the highchair by the breakfast table sat a pink, chubby baby with tufts of brown hair starting to grow in on her head. Her hazel eyes looked about the room curiously seeming to take in everything. She chewed happily on her spoon drool running in rivers down her fingers onto the tray in front of her. Harriet smiled at her and walked over picking her up despite the food on her bib and the drool on her face. Nothing could keep her from her baby Celeste, not even all the drool in the world.
"Alright Mrs. Haverty, I guess I'll be leaving then!" Jillian called out from the living room. Before Harriett had opened her mouth to call her goodbye the front door had slammed closed. Rolling her eyes she hugged Celeste softly as she cooed in her arms.
"What do you say we get ready for bed then?" She asked Celeste as she looked up at her with her hazel eyes.
Once Celeste was bathed and in her crib sleeping soundly, Harriet made her way to her bedroom and flopped down on her bed. She puffed out a heavy sigh and began to unbutton her suit jacket when the sound of someone clearing their throat stopped her. She sat up and turned towards the bedroom window to find a dark shadow backlit by the moonlight streaming through it. Clicking on the bedroom light, Harriett breathed out a sigh of relief to find a worried Professor McGonagall standing there.
"Professor! You scared me half to death…" Harriet cried putting a hand on her chest as she started to breathe normally once again.
"I'm sorry Harriet, but I did send word I was coming. I do have some grave news to tell you and I figured it was best for me to be the one to tell you it since you have no contact with the wizarding world anymore."
Professor McGonagall sat on the edge of the bed next to Harriet and placed her bony fingers over her hand soothingly. Harriet looked into her worried eyes expectantly staying quiet.
"James Potter is dead Harriet…" Professor McGonagall said softly almost in a whisper.
There was a long pause before Harriet's hand flew to her mouth as she let out a sob of both agony and horror. Tears filled her eyes and stung as she fought to compose words of questions she wanted answered immediately.
"It was you-know-who Harriet, he killed James and his wife Lily. He attempted to hurt their son Harry but somehow the small boy was protected from his magic."
Tears overflowing from her eyes now she sobbed, "their son?"
"Yes Harriet, their son Harry. He's safe now but we had to send him to live with his muggle Aunt and Uncle. That's why I am here…James had a special place for you in his heart and I need you to do something for me."
Harriet nodded her agreement, "Anything, just tell me." Although the words she spoke hurt her heart more than ever, she would do anything for James.
"I need you to keep an eye on Harry and make sure he is safe. Dumbledoor trusts these muggle relatives of his but I am not so sure. I figure since you have been living as a muggle for so long…" She trailed off her meaning understood.
"I will professor…" Harriet consented whipping the tears with the back of her hands and straightening up to compose herself.
"I know it's a lot to ask Harriet, especially considering your history with James…"
"Say no more Professor…" Harriet interrupted not wanting to bring back hurtful memories, "I'd still do anything for James."
Professor McGonagall nodded and handed her a piece of paper, "That's the address that Harry has been taken to, see that you are close enough to watch him but far enough away that he is never aware of your presence."
Harriet took the paper in her hands as the professor placed a hand on her shoulder getting up from the side of the bed. She squeezed Harriet's shoulder gently as she whispered her thanks and disappeared as quickly as she had come.
Harriet continued to stare down at the paper in her hands lost in her own thoughts. Lily and James had a son and now it was up to her to watch over this small boy. Fate had been so cruel to her in the past and now it was only getting its second laugh at her.
Unfolding the paper, Harriet read aloud, "Privet Drive" and then sighed to herself. It was going to take a lot for her to move both herself and her daughter but somehow she knew that she owed James at least that despite what he put her through.
