Gran'papa Owl
Character studies. The widowed Mr Goldstien knows all about raising owls; children, not so much. However, his wife, his son, and his daughter in law are all gone, leaving him to raise his two little granddaughters all on his own.
1915-17
When the girls are old enough to both go to school, they never have to be concerned with buying quills, because Eli makes his own from a few of his owls bred specifically for their firm feathers. Breeding and raising his owls is getting more difficult, so he returns to his old hobby of quill crafting, painting intricate, moving designs on the feathers and sells them for a nickel each.
The house feels empty without the girls, however, and though they are home for every holiday weekend, even his owls cannot keep off the edge of his loneliness. He is capable of cooking for himself now, though he usually only manages a pauper's meal. He and his granddaughters had all learned together, just as Queenie said they would, but cooking for one is not the same as getting out Abigail's mother's cookbook, him chopping the vegetables while Queenie worked the skillet and Tina handled the dishes. The adjustment is hard on him. It ages him more quickly.
Queenie isn't boy crazy, but the boys sure are crazy about her. Boys drive Queenie crazy with their craziness. Eli is glad that Tina is there to fight them off in his place. Owls bearing love letters follow her home on holidays, annoying all three of them, until Eli gives her an owl-repelling spell to look up and practice while she is at school. A few weeks after the girls' return to Ilvermorny, he receives a letter from his little queen gushing over how well his spell had worked and Eli feels a small weight lift from his chest. The thing Queenie has always needed the most was a bit of peace of mind.
Tina hardly notices boys until Eli begins selling off his owls the summer of her 16th birthday, at which point she develops eyes for the young man Eli sells his business off to, Abraham Pole's Owls, formerly Passenger Pigeons (the poor birds went extinct in '14). In his late twenties, Abe is too old to notice Tina, but she has her period of puppy love. Abe lets her down firmly, but gently, and she spends a few weeks nursing her first broken heart. Eli rubs her back and tells her what a shame it is that Abe couldn't see what a lovely girl she is, but he is secretly relieved. Tina is too headstrong for a man as orthodox as Abe Pole and Eli hopes that one day she will pair up with someone who finds that aspect of her an enjoyment and not an obstacle. Tina is not destined for the life of a housewife like her foremothers.
(It never crosses his mind that Tina may typically prefer the company of other women, her strong nature leading her to be drawn to people with caring, maternal instincts, and behind closed doors the girls agree that what Gran'papa doesn't know won't hurt him)
Queenie is picky about the boys, even if all the boys love Queenie. He hears about one or two of her crushes, and how from time to time she kisses the boys in exchange for chocolates and makes them cry, but she never meets anyone she likes enough to bring home. Her talents as a legilmens means her standards are high—which pleases her grandfather—and she is bored by a pretty face. This pleases him a bit less, as Eli believes his granddaughter should have a beau who is as handsome as she is beautiful.
(It never crosses his mind that Queenie finds most men to be romantically unbearable and women only slightly less so. Years of being viewed as a conquest means that Queenie deals in romance like the dealer in a game of cards and is just as expert in playing them.)
Author Notes:
I write bisexual-women-favoring Tina, and demi-sexual pan-romantic Queenie. Expect that to remain in play.
I am keen on the idea that Passenger pigeons may have been used as mail carriers amongst the wizarding community. They were certainly used in real life. They were much more intelligent that owls, but unfortunately the last Passenger pigeon, Martha, died in 1914. The species was hunted to extinction.
You can find me on Ao3 under the same old pen name. Find me on Tumblr, too.
Critique encouraged.
~MegiiJ