Two words I just like to say here concerning the future direction of this story. First is that this story going to explore outside Britian in various ways, including other Wizarding communities. Second is that some form of dark magic is going to manifest itself here in the story in various ways. I'm not gunning to create another Lord Voldemort, but it seems before he arrived on the scene there was a dark wizarding community living on the fringes of society (if Harry's side trip to Knockturn alley was any indication).
Chapter 3-Fantina's Nose
"The past cannot be changed. The future is yet within your power."-Anon
A melancholy calm cast itself over the house for the next month of June. Fantina stopped poking her nose where it didn't belong, while Tina and Skye busied themselves with studying what school they would go to. When they had narrowed it down, Karen Bones locked the three of them in Skye and Tina's room.
"Okay, what have you got?" Mom asked. Tina showed their mother three leaflets.
"Kwikspell, Beauxbattons summer camp, or Scriver's learn by owl mail system. They seem to be the most reputable out of all of them."
"My research too," Mom said, agreeing with them. "Here what I'm going to do. We'll start with Kwikspell or Scriver's, then I'll send you to the camp next year."
Karen braced herself for what she was going to say next. She lowered her voice to a whisper.
"But, we may soon have to choose which world to live in, Muggle or Wizarding."
"Why?" the twins chorused, caught off guard. They'd never considered such a possibility.
"Because you two know just about as any Muggle your age, perhaps more. Many Squibs have found it hard to adjust to living in a world where they can't do any magic. One thing I did when you were born is I registered you."
"With whom? The Ministry?"
"No indefinitely not," Mom said rather curtly. "The Ministry only keeps records of births starting from when you attend Hogwarts. But I had a strange feeling when I was carrying you three. When you were born, something told me you lacked the magical talent of your sister Fantina. I registered you with the British and American Muggle governments under my maiden name of Belle. If we must, we can simply go where I grew up...or any Muggle town for that matter. I'm just saying, you two must be prepared for that possibility."
Skye's eyebrow went up: Mom had never divulged much of her past other than just saying she was Muggle-born, much less her origins.
"Where did you live?" Tina asked, her curiosity getting the best of her.
"A small town across the pond, my family moved here and the Ministry enrolled me at Hogwarts. But I still keep some contact, so that's Plan Z. Let's make Plan A work first."
Karen left the room, using her magic to unlock and open the door.
CRASH!
"Ouch," came from behind the door.
"Fantina!" her mother screeched, pulling her daughter out rather roughly from behind the door. "What have I told you about eavesdropping?"
"Not to," Fantina said, without looking her in the eye. "What's Kwikpell and Scriver's?"
Mom had been preparing for this over the last month.
"Homeschool," she said. "Until next summer when Beauxhbattons opens their summer academy. I cannot afford to send them to board at that school at this time."
"Why not send me there?" Fantina demanded, folding her arms across her chest. Karen however, wasn't even remotely fooled by her daughter's pretended interest.
"Because, Hogwarts is where you'll thrive, I know that."
With that Karen left to the kitchen to write a few letters, leaving a frustrated daughter in her wake.
Later that day, the usual family reunion happened again. Except this time the topic of conversation was Skye and Tina Bones, not Fantina. The news of the rejection from Hogwarts had left the rest of the Bones family desperate for more information.
Uncle Alpheus, true to his word, had declared that his flock were disowning Karen: nobody understood why, and with his confrontational personality, they didn't care. Karen waited until Skye and Tina had withdrawn themselves from the family, exhausted from so much socializing before giving her announcement.
"Hey everyone," Karen called over the din, tapping a fork on her glass. "Like I wrote, it took sometime, but I finally have news. Many of you are wondering why I'm not sending two of my children to Hogwarts."
She braced herself for the fallout.
"They have been accepted at Beauxbattons instead."
A round of timid applause came from their audience, lessening the burden on Karen's shoulders.
"As non-French citizens, they cannot go until next year. So for now, I will be homeschooling them until next summer."
"That's great," Aunt Macey said.
She stepped closer.
"As you know, this decision wasn't made lightly and I request you spare questioning them as they so desired to attend the most prestigious wizarding school of all time. It hasn't been easy for them."
Chatter broke out again as Karen ended her announcement. Fantina smiled: she would now be free at Hogwarts to do what she wanted. Fantina and her favorite cousins began swapping stories about the magic school while Susan followed her adopted sister into the kitchen.
"There's something more here," she demanded of Karen. "I know you too well."
Karen looked her adopted sister in the eye, wondering if she could truly trust her. She decided to gamble.
"It's officially called Beauxbattons School for Squibs," she fessed up. "Apparantly Tina and Skye aren't gifted with as Fantina. Keep it quiet sis, if anyone else knows."
She drew a finger across her throat.
"Your secret is safe with me," Susan told her, giving her a hug. "Maybe something good will happen of this."
Susan rejoined the family chattering excitedly in the next room. Karen leaned against the wall, exhausted yet exhilarated. Tina and Skye, who'd just finished fixing up a Wii, came into the room and sat on either side of their Mom.
"Did they buy it?" Skye asked, seeing the look of worry on Mom's face.
"Kinda," Mom said. "It won't be long though before someone figures out the truth. We have to brace ourselves for that day."
"Uh Mom," Tina said, trying to conceal her excitement. "Watch this. Skye, throw that ball at me."
Skye picked up a confiscated bouncy ball and sent it Tina's way. She held out her hand and deflected it with a small shield of magic.
"Good," Mom said, hope shining in her eyes. "You do have magic."
"Is it enough to go to Hogwarts?"
Mom looked with sadness at her second youngest triplet. She reflected on the stories she heard there of the way Hogwarts accepted their students, how it took a magical pen and the Book of Acceptance had to agree together on which students would be admitted to Hogwarts. Rumor had it a student had to exhibit a lot of magic in order to have his/her name written in the book. She was sure it still wasn't enough: if not, why would the professor come to visit in person if they weren't already sure?"
"I'm afraid not. My hope is that if you two can learn enough magic over the next year, maybe we can persuade the Ministry to change it's mind about you."
"OK Mom," Tina said, not entirely convinced. She was still having trouble coping with the fact that one of her lifelong dreams might not come true.
"Tina, literally this is our best shot," Skye pointed out, always the realist. "What do we have to lose?"
"Alright," Tina finally conceded. She communicated through the bond with her brother though, that she was far from mollified.
June faded away into July as Karen worked to enrolled Skye and Tina in Shriver's and Kwikspell. But Fantina's notorious and often dangerous sense of curiosity was getting the best of her. In addition, her constant boasting about the alleged superiority of Hogwarts was slowly driving a wedge between her and her identical siblings. Halfway through the month, Skye and Tina withdrew themselves almost completely from Fantina, only talking to her at meals or when necessary, making life frustrating for the energetic and now often bored Fantina Bones.
So finally one day she snuck down into the kitchen in the middle of the day, the time she'd overhead Karen telling her siblings when their letter would arrive. She secreted herself behind the table, watching as three specks materialized in the sky, heading for the kitchen window that served as the owl post route. As the three arrived, she stood up...
"Colloportus," came from behind her.
The window slammed shut as three owls sped over Fantina's head, and right onto her mother's outstretched arm.
"Seriously," Mom said, taking the letters off before shooing the owls to a perch near the stairs. "I expected more from you Fantina."
Fantina just shared guiltily at her mom, caught in the act. Karen had a eagle-like hawk look she could call upon, inherited from her Muggle line, and she now deployed it to it's full effect. Fantina quivered under her gaze, before mustering up her courage.
"Mom, could I live with Susan's family until Hogwarts?" Fantina asked. She was going crazy not having anyone talk or play with her.
"Why?" Mom demanded.
"Because...because..." all of Fantina's argumentative points simply melted away under her mother's stern gaze.
"Fantina, just because you are going to Hogwarts doesn't make you superior to anyone. Don't make the mistake of the rest of the Bones family, believing and harking in pureblood status. Besides, you aren't a pureblood yourself."
Fantina blinked: Mom had never told her this before.
"I'm Muggle-born," Mom said, hoping this would take her rebellious daughter's pride down a peg. "That makes you a 'half-blood'. Now, I suggest you apologize to your siblings, and maybe they might play with you again."
Mom shooed Fantina back to her bedroom. She entered Skye and Tina's room to find them working on an old 1950s era TV.
"Where do you get all of this junk?" she asked, amazed.
"The nearby dump, don't worry, when we figure out how they work we put them back," Tina assured her. "Mostly."
She wasn't about to give up the Nintendo 64 they'd found two years prior.
"Now," she said, pulling them closer. "Skye and Tina Belle. Has a nice ring to it. If we have to go to the Muggle world, or if anything bad happens, our last name will be Belle. You should be proud: in Italian and French it means 'beautiful'.
Fantina came down the stairs in the middle of the night. She was fully dressed, had a few belongings, and went to the fireplace. To her consternation, the flowerpot containing Floo Powder was missing. In the shadow of the full moonlight flooding in through the window over the sink, she recognized a thin silhouette by the window.
"Long time no see," he said, a glass of water in his hand. "Going somewhere?"
"Visit Susan's," she responded half-truthfully. "Go live at Susan's actually."
"Why do you think Hogwarts makes you so special?" Skye demanded.
"Why aren't you going?"
"Because we're cool like that."
"You're a Squib, aren't you?" Fantina demanded, trying to rattle him.
"No we aren't," Skye said, un-intimidated. He finished his glass of water.
"Besides," he said, on his way to bed. "I never really wanted to go to Hogwarts anyways."
He left towards the stairs that lead to the second floor of the small condo/apartment.
"Oh, and by the way, Mom confiscated the Floo Powder, and the network closes at midnight."
Angered, Fantina snapped. As soon as Skye was gone, she grabbed a piece of parchment, a pen and wrote rather fast.
Dear Uncle Alpheus
My siblings are Squibs. Get me out of this...hellhole!
Sincerely, Fantina Bones
She looked around for Kent: he was gone, probably out hunting. She stuffed the letter into her nightgown and headed for bed. She would send it out somehow.