A/N: I will be updating a lot... keep tabs!
Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue.
"Did I tell you I've invented a broomstick that'll reach Jupiter?" - Ron Weasley
A few days later
"See? I told you this was going to happen!"
I rolled my eyes at my brother, as he repeated that line for the hundredth time in less than 72 hours.
"You never predicted Oxford would be attacked," I said, annoyed. "Stop being so bloody smug about it, you know perfectly well it could have happened to another muggle university."
We were eating at the table, as our mother, Rosalie, was serving generous portions of roasted chicken, her favorite muggle recipe; since she was a muggle herself. She had met my father in Italy, yes; he was Italian, and a wizard. They had fallen in love, and moved to London when Rosalie had been pregnant with me. My father had taken a job at the Ministry of Magic. As it was, my parents were very happy, and I hated to destroy their peaceful life by introducing magical catastrophes in the house as a dinner conversation.
"But didn't I tell you that You-know-who has been unleashing forces everywhere? I heard he's even recruiting trolls!" my brother persisted.
I sighed deeply. "Yes, there are many rumours. I don't really care who he recruits, all I care is the lives threatened."
"I heard the Dark Mark was over the Samson's house two nights ago," my father chipped in. "…I haven't heard from the family." His voice went silent.
It wasn't the first time we've heard him give us such news. Every few days, the Dark Mark would appear, sometimes very close, and other times, on the other side of the country. He continued with a tired voice.
"Some Aurors went to look and found the house empty… except for the pet they had. Its head had been chopped off."
I gulped, trying to take the image out of my mind.
"Roberto, the least you could do is keep those details for a time when we're not eating," my mother said, as she was about to take a mouthful of rice.
He shrugged, and went back to his thoughts. I glanced at Oliver; he looked dissatisfied that the conversation was over.
"But what about that bloke you said you saw that day?" he advanced, clearly wanting to debate longer.
"I don't think it was him who did the attack, he looked too…" I hesitated. "…normal. I saw his face, not the Death Eater type," I added.
"But you said he had a cloak on!"
"I saw that at first, but it was nowhere in sight when I came up to him."
"Once again, miss fails to find proof," he said under his breath.
I whacked him on the arm, hard enough to make him wince.
"You wouldn't have done better," I whispered, ticked off.
"Now children, please, you can fight after dinner," Rosalie said casually.
He looked at her, his jaw set. "Right." Then his eyes went to me, challenging. "Nine sharp," he muttered, getting up.
I smiled sweetly at him. "Nine? Because ten is much too late for you?"
He picked up my plate, although I was far from finished, and emptied it in the bin. "No, but I like the lanterns outside. It will help you see better." He smirked.
I clenched my teeth. "Watch your back, wiz kid."
He rolled his eyes, imitating me so perfectly I suddenly wanted to laugh. "Dream on sista," he said, clicking his fingers.
Rosalie shot us both a glare, and we hurried out of the kitchen before she would steam us alive. She hated seeing us arguing over stupidities. She knew their prolonged vacation had made a certain effect on our moods. One was bickering much much more. And duelling.
I went up to my room, to see my owl, Sneekpees, perched on my window frame. I quickly took away the letter between her claws and tore it open.
Dear Julia,
You will never believe what happened! You know, my friend Ginny? I told you about her last year; she was in my herbology classes. Anyways, she found a secret passage on the second floor! We still don't know where it leads, but it's something we will know for sure by the end of the week.
On other matters, my teachers aren't so bad. They are already fussing on our OWL's; which is ridiculous. It's still months away! They give us loads of homework; I've been sleeping five hours a night up to now. But I still love Transfiguration. There's a trip to Hogsmeade, in a few weeks, maybe you should come and visit then? I'll write back later to give you the exact date. Can't wait to hear from you!
Love, Hannah.
I smiled, my heart easing. I was on high alerts since Dumbledore's death, and anything remotely strange going on in the school, I would be told by her. She had promised to tell me if ever there was something amiss. I was scared for her safety, but my parents kept telling me Hogwarts was the safest place on earth. I was also very doubtful of any place being 'safe'. I knew I couldn't keep her with me forever; she still had a life to build, even in the middle of a war.
Going to Hogsmeade would definitely appease me and would be the perfect opportunity to see the old shops again. I put the letter on my desk; I would write back to her in the morning.
I glanced at the clock; I only had half an hour before kicking my brother's arse. It always pleased me to practice, and there was no one better as a victim than Oliver. He was feisty and quick, which I admired and hated at the same time. And he was unpredictable; but so was I. I looked over to where my burnt television was still; I wasn't able to throw it away just yet.
I rummaged around, thinking. I was good at unknown charms and dreadful spells, but I was above all, good in searching for the bad guys. I would have done my work at the attack, but the muggle police arrived too fast, and I knew some officials from the Ministry would be popping up soon as well. It clearly wasn't the time to investigate.
And that red-headed guy… He could have been the attacker, but something in his eyes made me think otherwise. He could have been a student there as well, hiding his true identity as a wizard. But I had never seen him before. Where did he come from?
I sighed deeply, rubbing my face to get rid of the tiredness sweeping over me. It was almost nine, so I made my way downstairs, grabbed a coat and went into our yard. We had put an invisible wall around the property so as not to be heard shouting nonsense about wizards, brooms and wands.
The lanterns were on, small lights swinging in the cold breeze of the night. He was there, sitting in a chair, fumbling with his wand. He got up when he saw me.
"How about a little warm up?" he asked, gesturing at the sky.
"We are not flying, how many times do I have to tell you?" I said, eyes widening. "If a muggle sees us…"
"Yeah but it's dark! We have the wall, anyway."
He exasperated me beyond imagination. "The wall doesn't go up."
He observed the sky, surprised. "Oops."
I frowned. "What did you do?"
He made a sheepish smile. "I tried some fireworks from a shop in Diagon Alley, one night when you went out with some friends."
My face flushed with anger. "You bloody prick!" I took one step forward, but he was faster.
"Expelliarmus!"
Seconds later, I was lying flat on my back, a good fifteen feet away. I slowly got up, catching my breath.
"I didn't say you could hex me!" I said, rubbing my sore back.
His smile was gone. "Why can't you take me seriously?" he whispered. "I'm trying to help you."
"I won't be an Auror Oli! Stop thinking about it!" I had gained by posture, my wand raised, as steady as my hand could muster.
"But you will." A sudden determination flooded his eyes, and I could not understand why.
"Oliver, you are not making any sense!" I shouted, as if the loudness of my voice could actually reason with him. "I make my own decisions!"
He knew what I was about to do and sidestepped to the left, but I was quicker.
"Incarcerous!"
Ropes wrapped themselves around him, and he fell to the ground, wildly trying to free himself. I went over to him, feeling slightly nauseous.
"You are my brother, and I will not let you control my life."
He gave me a dark eye. I closed my eyes, shaking my head.
"You are not thinking straight. You need time," I sighed.
I bent close to his face; his features relaxed. "Sleep tight," I whispered. "I heard the night was going to be… cold."
I didn't even smile; it was nothing about revenge or satisfaction. He needed a wake up call, and this was the only thing that came to mind.
He groaned loudly, but I walked away.
- - - - -
November
"Where's that purple cloak I bought a few months ago? I thought it was in my closet!"
I had been desperately searching for it for the last hour. My mother was helping with my suitcase; I was packing for my trip to Hogsmeade, and was truly excited about it. I couldn't wait to spend some time alone with my sister in a place I truly loved.
Rosalie made a pitiful face. "Oh dear," she put a hand to her mouth. "I think I packed it with Hannah's things."
I threw my arms in the air. "Brilliant! It's almost below zero outside, and I have no cloak to put on!"
I checked in my closet for something else to wear, but soon enough, our girly-packing was interrupted by the men of the house. They came in, peeking.
"How's the packing going?" my father asked, eyeing my empty suitcase suspiciously.
"Not very well," I retorted, casting an it's-all-your-fault look at Rosalie.
Oliver, who was right behind, came storming in, eyeing my clothes as well. He had forgiven me for leaving him freezing outside for an entire night. My mother almost had a heart attack at the sight of him; she had accused me of being mean and cold-hearted. I couldn't blame her, but I couldn't tell her what had happened, so I took in every single reproach without a word.
"How long are you going to be there, again?" he asked, making himself comfortable on my little couch.
"I've reserved for a week at the Three Broomsticks," I replied, looking at my clothes critically.
My father soon realized there was nothing else interesting, and quickly left before we would include him into something he called 'women things'. Oliver stayed, enjoying my hysterics as I was still unable to find a single cloak in my closet.
"Mum, did you destroy my entire collection? Or am I completely going out of my mind?"
"Mentally going mad," Oliver added. He winked, finding the whole thing quite hilarious.
"I took a few to clean, but I put them back exactly where they were… do you have a secret door behind all this chaos?" she suggested. "Maybe you forgot…"
I exhaled, and slowly breathed in again. "Yeah, maybe, can't remember…" I looked, but if there was a second closet behind the first one, I would know by now. Suddenly I did remember. I bent down and reached out my arm under the bed. It came out with the whole stash. I let out a cry of victory.
"Found them!"
Rosalie rolled her eyes before taking the bundle of clothes away into her arms. "I'll clean them, again."
I made a sheepish shrug before she left. Oliver gave me another wink. "Way to go sister." He made a thumb up.
I ignored him and took the time to put the rest of my things in order so as to be ready to leave. I couldn't apparate on the grounds of the school, so I had to take the train; the same old platform 9 and ¾. I would be leaving tonight.
A/N: I'll just clear up something: I know her brother sounds incredibly weird, but he's just darn plain persistent. Everyone knows in the family how good Julia actually is as an Auror, and he's the one that knows more than anyone. That's why he keeps pushing her. Voilà.
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