Christmas
In all the excitement of the snow, four days slipped past quickly, and all too soon, it was the morning of the twenty-fifth of December.
"Get up!" yelled Geoff, sticking his head through the crack in her door. "It's Christmas, Amy! Wake up!"
He ran off, yelling at everyone else to "Get up!", and Amy glanced at her watch. It was just past seven. She smiled, suddenly awake, and slipped into a pair of shoes before running downstairs. Even now, at nearly sixteen, Christmas made her feel like a little child again.
"Amy!" Lily called as Amy came down the stairs. "Happy Christmas!"
She grinned. "Happy Christmas."
All of the children were already awake, and Geoff passed a huge, long package, wrapped in glittery red paper, at her. "Open up, Ames."
She tore it open to find a broomstick. It was of a deep bronze colour, with a smooth shaft, and gold lettering on the side read: Swiftshot 5000. Geoffrey whistled. Who had given her a Swiftshot? She caught sight of a card attached:
Amy,
Thought you'd want this if you were going to become part of the team.
Merry Christmas and hope the New Year is amazing!
James
Geoff, reading it over her shoulder, frowned. "You're going to become part of the team?" he asked. "James, what're you…?" Then he remembered Amy's sudden knack at flying. "Oh. Right."
She grinned, and hugged James. "Thanks, this must've cost a lot."
He shrugged, and she could've sworn that she saw a hint of a blush on his cheeks. "It was the best thing I could think of for you."
"What am I going to do with my Dreamflame?" Amy chuckled.
Then she remembered an incident two days ago, when Albus had nose-dived and swerved accidentally into a shed. His broom had snapped in two.
"Albus?" she offered.
"Really?" Albus beamed. "Thanks."
Then she saw a smaller package, also addressed to her, and she opened it. It was a pale blue jumper with the letter A in the middle, in a darker blue. She looked around to see that most of the others were wearing similar jumpers.
"Mrs. Weasley?" she asked, and they all nodded. "So she's still keeping up the tradition."
Geoff handed her a few more presents. The first was from him, a giant (it was bigger than her face) lollipop from Honeydukes, which he claimed was the only one in stock. The second was from Rose, a small red purse with gold clasps ("It's Gryffindor colours," she had explained). The third, another giant lollipop from Honeydukes from Hugo, raising an argument between Hugo and Geoff, since he had said he was sure that it was the only one in stock… And her fourth present, which looked devastatingly familiar… another lollipop from Albus. Lily gave her a pretty grey scarf, which Amy said she loved.
"This is from Mum and Dad," said Geoff, and handed her another huge present.
Once unwrapped, she saw that it was a shiny owl's cage. The card read:
Amy, darling,
Happy Christmas!
We noticed Mist's cage was getting a little old, so here's a new one! Love you both and miss you.
Love Mum and Dad
"Mist!" she called, and the silver owl flew down to her. "Look what Mum and Dad got you!"
The owl hooted her approval, and inched forwards to inspect it further.
"And this is the last one," Geoff said. His voice somehow seemed to be quieter, and he looked away.
Amy unwrapped the last present. It was two things: a thin book titled Tricksters; Whatever you Need, Whenever you Need, and a photo album filled with pictures of everyone she knew. She read the card, and the tears came.
Amy,
Merry Christmas and have a BRILLIANT New Year!
I hope you like the book; maybe now you can learn something from me, rather than me always learning stuff from you! Ha ha! I love you really of course!
I thought the other thing might be nice too, since you're always talking about getting a photo album, so you can take everyone you love wherever you go. Ahh! I sound like such a sap! Well, it's what I think, so there you go. Just make sure no-one else reads that last part!
Love ya forever Ames,
xox Aaron xox
Amy was curled up on the sofa, crying softly, when James came.
"Hey there," he said.
"They still haven't found him, James," she said quietly. "Aaron's not here. He missed Christmas."
"They'll find him, Ames," he said.
"It's been more than a week, James." She buried her face into the woolly 'J' of his jumper. "A week. What if he's… what if he's dead?"
"He's fine, Ames." But the worry in his voice was clear. "He's not dead. You know him; he's the type that'll survive anything. He's probably snarling back at the Red-caps whose cave he's taken over!"
"But he might not be," she retorted. "He's probably cold and hungry and wishing he was here with us…"
"Amy, we're going back home… well, to my house in a few minutes, so do you want to meet your parents there?" he asked. "They might, you know, have some more information..."
They were going back. Harry's office would be there. And so would the Marauder's Map…
"No, it's fine," she said weakly. "I just… I'll see them some other time. I don't really feel like seeing them today. I'm a mess."
"You sure?"
She nodded.
"Okay, my parents are waiting for us outside." He grabbed her bag. "You need a bit more time?"
She wiped the tears from her eyes. "No, it's okay, let's go."
"The thing is, Dad," James was saying to Harry, "We've made a discovery."
"A discovery, James?"
He leaned across the table, and with one hand patted Amy's shoulder. "Amy here isn't bad on a broom, Dad. I reckon she'd make a fair Chaser."
"Amy?" said Harry, looking up from the Quibbler, the business that her mother, Luna, ran, now that her grandfather, had passed away.
Amy's cheeks burned. His surprise was so evident.
"Thanks," she said sarcastically.
"No, Amy," Harry quickly said. "I just meant—"
She shook her head, smiled. "It's fine. Everyone else has had the same reaction."
But James wouldn't let it go. "She's amazing, Dad. I'm making her trial for the team."
"James," said Harry uneasily, "are you sure?"
"She has a good broom, too," went on James. "A Swiftshot 5000, the same as mine."
Harry looked impressed. Amy frowned. Wasn't he going to tell his father that he was the one who had bought it for her?
"Amy," said Harry, "if you really want to trial, then I'm not stopping you. No one is. But—"
"Dad, you've never seen her on a broom, have you?" James said. Harry shook his head no. "Well then, you can't judge. She took everyone by surprise. And she's got a good aim."
Harry chuckled. "Well if that's the case, good luck, Amy!"
She smiled. "Thanks, Uncle Harry."
