The Second Letter

The kitchen was a mess. The sun was shining brightly though the red frilly curtains and Fay could clearly see the disaster zone. Fay was tempted to go and call her brothers and sister inside to get them to clean up their own mess, but instead she just moved the dirty dishes out of the way before sitting down at her usual setting. She would wash them after breakfast. She didn't want to leave a mess for mum and she didn't want a row with her siblings. Not at – she looked at the clock – 9: 32 am in the morning.

Summer was for sleeping in, Fay thought, but the rest of her family disagreed. They all woke with the birds; leaving her to eat alone and finish up the dishes long after they had all gone to work or play.

'I'm like their house elf' Fey thought to herself. But what did she expect with a house full of boys. Fey had three older brothers and only one younger sister. Her mother had had the boys in an earlier marriage, and when her first husband – the boys father – had been killed early in the war for being a blood traitor, she had married Fay and Katy's father. Her father was an Obliviator and was often stressed for time; so she didn't blame him for not picking up after himself and her mother worked nightshifts at St. Mongo's so she was still abed. But her brother's Alic, Harfang (named after Fay's mother's great-grand father Harfang Longbottom), and Timothy were all on holiday, and didn't have anywhere important to be. Harfang and Timothy didn't even live at the Dunbar's residence anymore. They had graduated from Hogwarts years ago and both lived overseas. They were just in the country for mother's fiftieth birthday. You would think that they would know how to clean up their breakfast plate, but no, they had to leave it for Fay or their mother to clean. They just wanted to go outside and play Quidditch – like little children.

After she had eaten her toast with marmalade and washed it all down with a glass of cold milk, she washed the dishes and headed outside. She squinted against the sun and spotted her brothers and sister all riding broomsticks. Katy was on her toy broom and was being helped along by her eldest brother Harfang; and instead of playing a game of two-on-two Quidditch, they were playing catch with Katy using the Quaffle. Fay smiled to herself as she went to fetch her broomstick. They were good brothers even if they made terrible house keepers.

After getting on her broom she zoomed up behind Alic and snatched the Quaffle from him. The five siblings played until their mother called them in for lunch. Mum served the family cheese sandwiches with soup.

"I'm impressed" Mum said told us "You cleaned up, this morning! This is a first" Her eyes twinkled in Fay's direction, so Fay knew mum knew the truth. That she had done the washing up. The boy's all looked guiltily down at their plates and missed mum winking at Fay's direction. "Since you have all decided to take up more responsibility, you boys can clean up the lunch as well." Fay laughed as the boys sputtered but didn't protest.

Mum sipped her tea, as she tried not to laugh at her boy's expressions. She knew her children too well to think that they had done any of the cleaning. They were just like their father in that regard. She felt dread whenever she thought of Harfang and Tim's house in Egypt. It was probably a mess. The boys were had gotten too dependent on the Hogwarts house elves and now that they were on their own…

That reminded her.

Mum got up from her seat and walked over to the letters the owl had delivered less than an hour earlier.

"Hogwarts letters have arrived" she informed Fay who was entering her second year, and Alic who was in his last year.

"Excellent!" Alic said "I hope I made Captain now that Loren has graduated." He was in Ravenclaw. He was the only one in the family.

Fay just took her letter. She had been waiting for this moment all summer. Though she had gotten mail from friends and family, she didn't think she would ever get over trill of receiving a letter. And a Hogwarts letter was the best kind to receive. She remembered last year's adventures and couldn't wait for this year's.