Two chapters in the SAME DAY! It's a miracle! These were really easy to write, to be honest. Enjoy!

Chapter 13: Summertime

Saturday came with the promise of another sunny day with Mischa. They went to Diagon Alley first and changed some of Lavinia's gold for muggle money for later. Then they made their way to the Owl Emporium to pick out Lavinia's owl.

She came out with a small black owl perched on her shoulder. She had named him Hellebore after one of her favorite flowers. The sack of food and treats was in the cage that dangled from her left hand. Hellebore took flight from her shoulder and after a brief moment of panic, Mischa explained that he had already made his connection with her and would be heading to her house. Lavinia hoped he didn't scare her mother.

They put the cage in the back of Mischa's truck, which they had left parked in front of the Leaky Cauldron. As they started down the road, Mischa asked Lavinia what she wanted to do. Lavinia couldn't really come up with anything. Mischa looked sideways at her.

"You wanna go back to the woods? We could go get stuff for a picnic and stay out there all day," Mischa suggested. Lavinia thought that was a fantastic idea, so they went to a small grocery store and grabbed a few things. "I have a small outdoor stove in the back of the truck, so we can get whatever we want and cook it," Mischa said as she put a pack of raw beef in the basket. "Actually, I have a couple of friends who might like to join us sometime, if you're ever interested in making friends in the muggle world." Lavinia thought about it. They'd all be older than her, she was sure. After some deliberation, she told Mischa she'd consider it for a while.

They made their way to the clearing nearly an hour later, each carrying one end of a small cooler. They had soda, water, chips, candy, and stuff for sandwiches. The beef, it turned out, were for fried meatballs, which Mischa could make on her little camping stove. They spent the day relaxing in the clearing, listening to music, swimming in the little pond, and eating. Around five in the afternoon, both girls were so relaxed that they took an hour long nap in the sunlight.

They woke up as the sun was setting and watched the sky turn red. After a bit, Mischa gathered up some wood and made a campfire. They roasted marshmallows and made s'mores and listened to more music until nearly nine. Finally, Mischa took Lavinia home.

XXXXXXX

The entire summer was like that. Mischa spent at least one day a week with Lavinia, sometimes two. Lavinia spent a lot of time cooking, reading, and gardening. Mischa had taken her to a bookstore at one point to get her a book on gardening, and Lavinia had devoured it, learning how to grow flowers and food without magic. Of course, every gardener has a magic touch, and Lavinia was no different. Her flowers grew large and her few crops were succulent. She had marked a calendar for her mother to harvest them, as she would be at school around that time and wouldn't be able to do it herself. Her mother had agreed to do so.

Every few weeks, Lavinia would use Hellebore to send a message to Professor Snape, letting him know that she was fine, even sending him the occasional food parcel. He enjoyed her cooking, conveying his approval with requests for more. He seemed to have a particular taste for her brownies. Who knew Professor Snape had a sweet tooth? This cracked Mischa up to no end, for some reason.

Lavinia's birthday found her at Mischa's house. She had found a new cookbook from her mother on the kitchen counter when she'd gone downstairs this morning with a note saying "Happy Birthday Lavinia" sitting on top. Mischa had picked her up at noon and taken her to her house. Dee from the record store was there, as was Mischa's mother. Mischa had an older brother as well, Riley, but he lived in London and only visited every other weekend. The Prewetts had put together a simply decorated party for Lavinia, complete with a rich cheesecake that made Lavinia's mouth water. Dee had given Lavinia a certificate for three free cassette tapes at the store and then left, needing to get to work. Mrs. Prewett had given Lavinia a lovely set of emerald combs to go in her hair, and Mischa had presented her with a gigantic box of cherry flavored jellybeans, which were Lavinia's favorite. Professor Snape's owl had shown up at around three and dropped a small book in her lap, with a note.

Miss Cross,

Happy Birthday. This is for recording your own Potions experiments in. It will automatically record changes you make to whatever potion you're working on.

Professor Snape

Lavinia had been delighted, resolving to try it out as soon as she returned to Hogwarts. Talk turned to classes and what to expect in the coming years.

"In third year, you get to pick electives, such as Care Of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes. I think you'd like those two, actually. One deals with animals and the other requires a ton of reading. Anyways, fifth year is when you take your Ordinary Wizarding Levels. And trust me, they work you hard that year. They also expect you to decide what you want to do with your life during that year and start focusing on the studies you actually need for that field. And seventh year, which is what I'm getting ready to start, you take your N.E.W.T.s, which are your Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests. I'll let you know how that goes," Mischa had explained.

At one point, Lavinia inquired if Mischa's father would be joining them. Mischa had shaken her head. "Dad's dead. He was killed during the Wizarding War nine years ago. His name was Gideon Prewett; you know the Weasley bunch, in Gryffindor?"

Lavinia nodded, remembering the redheaded twins that had been nice to her on the train but had ceased speaking to her after the Sorting.

"Their mother is Gideon's sister. So really, we're cousins. We're not close though, because when Gideon married mum, they lived in another country for a few years before moving back, right in time for dad to die. Molly still sends food now and then, but not so much since I was Sorted. My brother, Riley, is a Squib. Magical blood, but no magical ability. It's rare, but does happen. She's a nice woman, but very Gryffindor."

The conversation turned towards more pleasant things. At one point, Lavinia brought up the color changing walls of her room. Mischa's mother had laughed, reminded of when Mischa had done the very same thing.

"It turned out it was changing with my mood. I can help you put yours right tonight when I take you home, if you want," Mischa said, smiling. Lavinia nodded, remembering how her mother had shouted at her to pick a color for her room. She did really love green.

After the small birthday party, the girls went out for a movie and dinner. Lavinia bought herself a very lovely green dress with a sheer black gauzy material draped over the skirt and laces up the back of the bodice. The top was beaded with green gems. The rest of the evening was spent in the clearing with a bonfire and s'mores once again.

When Mischa returned Lavinia to her home, she came in with her and they crept up to her room. It took her a few minutes to get the walls to change to a solid, unchanging green, then she left quietly, hoping not to disturb Lavinia's mother. It seemed to work, for Audra did not come out. Lavinia set her birthday gifts and the remainder of the cheesecake that Mrs. Prewett had insisted she take on her desk. She stroked her owl as Lissy made her way up her leg.

Did you have fun? The little serpent asked. Lavinia nodded, then told Lissy about her day. Lissy flickered her tongue happily. I shed my skin today. No more itching! The poor snake had been itching ceaselessly for over a week now, and Lavinia was glad it was over. They curled up together on Lavinia's bed, where she read until she fell asleep.

XXXXXXX

The rest of the summer was just as peaceful. Mischa took Lavinia swimming a few times, and several times, they met up with one or two of Mischa's older friends. Lavinia quite liked them, and they seemed to like her as well. They spent a lot of time in the woods together and had bonfires. Mischa would always take Lavinia home before ten.

Her relationship with her mother stayed steady. The only real contact they ever made was when Lavinia cooked. It didn't bother Lavinia at all. It was quite peaceful.

Finally, her new booklist came in the middle of August. She arranged to go with Mischa to Diagon Alley. A week before term, they went, picking up new books, stocking up on potions ingredients, and in the muggle world, stocking up again on batteries for their tape players. Fully stocked and ready for the new term, Mischa arranged to pick Lavinia up the night before they caught the train, so that Lavinia could ride with them to King's Cross. Lavinia informed her mother via note, to which she replied with a hastily scrawled Have a good term then. August thirty first found Lavinia all packed up and ready to go to Hogwarts. Mischa picked her up at noon. Audra stepped out of the house as the girls were packing Lavinia's trunk into the bed of Mischa's purple truck. It took both of them by surprise when she spoke.

"So this is who you spend your time with?" Audra said, somewhat awkwardly.

"Yes, this is Mischa," Lavinia replied. Audra gave Mischa a nervous smile, which Mischa met with a grin of her own.

"Well, goodbye then, Lavinia," Audra said. She hesitantly patted Lavinia's shoulder and went back into the house.

"Goodbye, Mother," Lavinia whispered before climbing into Mischa's truck.

When they arrived at Mischa's, her older brother was there.

"He always comes to see me off," Mischa explained as she hugged Riley.

"Hey Lavinia, sorry we haven't met before, I'm Riley," he said, shaking her hand.

"Nice to meet you," Lavinia replied. They went inside and sat down for a nice dinner with Mrs. Prewett. They spent the entire afternoon watching old movies together. Lavinia slept in a lovely guest room colored in grey and blue. The next morning, it was time to return to Hogwarts.

Sorry guys, the interlude of peace is over. Back to hell.