A/N-In response to some fans' comments: I merely said Lianne's father had a muscular disease, but I have done my research (hooray for research!) decided to make it "Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy". You can learn about Limb-Girdle MD at 'www, brainlink, org, au / muscular-dystrophy, htm' (substitute periods for my commas). By the way, I need to know if the Greengrass mentioned within the Harry Potter books was 'Daphne Greengrass' or 'Tracey Greengrass'. Both names are frequently mentioned within fanfiction, but I must know which one is correct. Thank you!
I walked downstairs yawning and stretching my arms. "Hey, Mom, what's for breakfast?" I asked, seeing my mother in the kitchen cleaning the counters.
"You slept well," Mom commented, "And no, it's lunch. It's one in the afternoon."
"Whatever," I grumbled, "Can you just grab me some cereal? I'm tired."
"I'm sure you are." Mom poured me my cereal. "You were still awake at three in the morning. What was bothering you?"
"Nothing," I lied, "Nothing at all. Oh, and thanks for distracting me with that 'summer school' nonsense you made up," I added. Then I looked up, worried. "That was nonsense, right?"
She handed me my cereal, then said, "No, Lianne, I was serious about that."
"Aw, man!" I muttered, "That sucks."
"What was that, young lady?" Most of my classmates had parent who didn't care if they occasionally used slightly inappropriate language like 'sucks'. My mother was not one of those parents. 'Sucks' wasn't even that bad of a word anyways, but Mom didn't like me to say it.
"Nothing!" I ate my cereal with a scowl. "So, what are we doing today?"
"Well, I'm going down to the hospital to visit your father," Mom told me, "Would you like to come?"
"Would I like to-" I repeated, wondering why she thought there might be the slightest possibility of me not wanting to come with her, "Of course I would!" My frown turned into a huge smile and I ran upstairs to get dressed. I was back down a few minutes later, wearing my best pair of jeans and a clean T-shirt.
My mom looked at me with one eyebrow raised. "Your shirt's inside out," she observed.
"Oh, man!" I ran back upstairs and returned with my shirt on properly. "Come on, Mom, let's go!" I grabbed her arm and began to drag her to the door.
"Lianne! Lianne!" Mom protested. "We aren't seeing your father for two more hours. Why don't you watch some TV to pass the time?"
"Fine!" I grumbled, grabbing the remote. I turned on the TV and stared at it. "Is it time yet?" I asked.
"No, Lianne," my mother said, laughing, "You were never quite this impatient. What's gotten into you?"
I sighed. "It's just, I haven't gotten to see him since the summer. I miss him. How is his shoulder?" I asked, referring to the area where his muscular dystrophy had affected him the most.
"It isn't exactly doing better," Mom said, "But the disease hasn't spread too much since his last checkup."
I smiled and stared at the TV some more, waiting desperately for three o' clock.
-----
"Daddy!" I cried as I ran into my father's room. He was lying in a hospital bed wearing one of those hospital nametag bracelets. I hated how the doctors always made him lie down in that bed. He was sick; he wasn't dying.
"Janet!" he replied, giving me a hug, "Oh, no wait, I forgot. When your mother called, she said you wanted to be called Lianne." He laughed. "Darn that old age! I'm losing my memory." Dad always made a big joke about losing his memory.
"Oh, Dad," I giggled, "You're only forty-one. That's not old."
"That's what everyone tells me," he said, "So, how was school?" He put emphasis on the word as if saying it like that made it part of a secret code.
"It was fine," I answered, imitating him. I laughed at my joke. "I learned a lot of stuff," I told him, careful not to make any mention of magic around the doctors, "And I made a really good friend there."
"Oh, right, you mentioned her in one of your letters," Dad said, "Mary, right?"
"Her name's Maura, Dad."
"Oh, right," he said, chagrined, "Darn that old age! I'm losing my memory."
"You said that already, Dad."
"You see? I'm losing it already!" he replied. I burst into laughter. Dad always knew how to make me laugh. I began to describe my time at Hogwarts to him once Dad's doctor had left the room. It seemed like only a few minutes had passed by the time six o'clock came around and visiting hours were officially over.
"We have to leave now, Lianne," Mom reminded me.
I got up and headed to the door. "I love you, Dad," I told him.
"I love you too, Lianne."
-----
I came downstairs to see Mom struggling to put up the Christmas tree. "You know," I remarked, "Most families don't wait until Christmas Eve to put up their tree."
"Most families have a lot more free time than us," she replied, trying to balance the tree. At a height of six feet, it was a good eight inches taller than my petite mother, and she was having trouble getting it to stand up straight. "Now, are you going to help me with this, or are you just going to stand there?" I walked over and helped her put the tree in the stand.
"What made you decide to get a real tree this year?" I asked her.
"Oh, I don't know," she replied, "I just fancied having a real plant in the house this year."
"I'll get the snacks ready," I said. I walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge. "Mom, there aren't any snacks in here."
"Oh!" Mom groaned, "Snacks! I forgot." I sighed. Sometimes Mom had more 'memory problems' than Dad did.
I grabbed my winter coat. "Let's get to the grocery store, then."
As we grabbed a cart at the store, Mom asked, "So, what do we need?"
"Cookie dough, some for eating raw and some for cooking, M&M's, chocolate bars, frosting, eggnog-"
"-Which under no circumstances are you allowed to drink," Mom warned.
"Of course," I said, "And, last but not least, the Christmas turkey. Or ham. What do you think, Mom?"
"Why don't we go with ham?" Mom suggested, "Turkey is better for when the whole family is eating dinner."
"Right," I replied.
I woke up the next day at about ten o'clock. I brushed my teeth, got dressed, and then remembered it was Christmas morning. "Mom! Mom!" I ran downstairs. "Mom! It's Christmas!"
Mom was in the kitchen fixing breakfast. "So it is," she said, a huge smile on her face, "Do you want to open your presents now, or do you want to save them for later?"
It was an easy choice. "Now!" My mom laughed, knowing that this would be my answer.
I had gotten a lot of clothes from my grandparents, a makeup kit from my aunt Elizabeth, and some books from Uncle Ed. My mom was happy about the clothes and the books, but was less than thrilled about the makeup kit. She told me I wasn't allowed to use it until I was at least thirteen.
Finally, Mom said, "This one is from your father and me." She handed me a lumpy package.
I opened it up and gasped. It was a brand-new bright blue skateboard, with a helmet and a set of elbow and knee pads to match. It was a gift I had begged for from when I was nine years old to when I was ten and a half, when I had found out that skateboarding was dorky. It was then that I had quit because I didn't want to give Stacey another reason to tease me. Of course, Mom thought I stopped skateboarding because I didn't have any time.
"Do you like it?" Mom asked.
"I love it, Mom," I told her, not sure whether this was a lie or not. After all, I had loved skateboarding, and I hated having to stop. "Thanks."
Mom began to clean up the scattered wrapping paper and packing peanuts as I pulled one last present out from under the tree. "This is for you and Dad, Mom. It's from me," I said. I handed it to her.
The brown paper was clumsily wrapped around it, but it was clear the present was round like a ball, and it just barely fit in my hand. Mom slowly opened the parcel revealing a clear ball. The tag attached to the package read, "For all your 'memory losses'. Love, Lianne".
"It's a Remembrall," I told my mom, "When it turns red, it means there's something you've forgotten to do. It's magic, so you'll want to hide it from any Muggle visitors, but it should really help you out, like if you've left the stove on, or forgotten to buy groceries or something. Professor Longbottom helped me buy it. He said it was a lifesaver when he was a kid."
Mom smiled. "Thanks, Lianne."
"Don't mention it," I said.
After breakfast, I brought my gifts up to my room, and, after much consideration, put my new skateboard near my door. Maybe I'd give skateboarding another try in the summer.
-----
A few days later, I finally decided to read one of the books Uncle Ed sent me. I was reading about the exploits of Harriet M. Welsh for a few hours until I was interrupted by a tapping at my window. I looked up and saw an owl tapping his beak on my windowpane. I opened it up and the owl dropped a package in front of me. I untied the letter attached to its leg and read it. It contained a brief message, and merely said:
Lianne,
Happy Christmas!
Your friend,
Maura
I grinned and opened the package. It contained a knitted hat even more shoddily made than my scarf. It was made from fraying red wool and barely fit on my head. There was some golden embroidery on the front which I assumed was supposed to be a lion, but bore some resemblance to a lop-eared rabbit. It was clear Maura had never knitted anything in her life, but I didn't mind. I was just happy to finally have a friend.
-----
"Do you have your textbooks?" Mom asked me.
"Check," I said.
"Your clothes?"
"Check," I said.
"Your cauldron?"
"I left it at school, Mom," I told her.
"What else did you leave at school?" she asked, worried.
"My scales, my potions ingredients, and my telescope," I recited.
"Do you have your alarm clock?"
I sighed. "Digital clocks don't work at Hogwarts, Mom. That's why I'm not bringing my CD player, remember?"
"Oh, right."
"We've got everything, Mom," I said, "Stop worrying."
"I can't!" Mom cried, "I just feel like we've forgotten something!"
"Then give me the Remembrall and we'll see," I told her patiently. Mom frowned, a look of concentration on her face. "Mom?"
She took a deep breath. "I've forgotten where it is," she confessed.
"You left it on the hall table, next to the keys. Remember?"
"Oh, right," she said as she walked out my bedroom door. I sighed. Mom always insisted on going over the list of everything I had packed several times before I traveled anywhere. I still had a good
two days before I left for Hogwarts, and Mom couldn't stop panicking. I sighed again, wishing Mom wouldn't be so paranoid about it.
Mom returned a minute later, holding the Remembrall. I noticed it had turned bright scarlet in her hand. She gave it to me, and all trace of ruddiness in the orb vanished.
"Now do you believe I haven't forgotten anything?" I asked, holding up the Remembrall. Mom nodded, then tried to remember what it was she had forgotten. I leaned against the wall, and heard the faint sound of running water. On a hunch, I asked her, "Did you forget to turn off the bathwater, Mom? I think it's overflowing."
"Oops."
