The next morning, Teddie awoke to her bed dipping. She knew, without needing to open her eyes, that it was Mason. It was Christmas morning, and despite the late night they had had the previous evening because of the big Christmas Ball, the age-old tradition the siblings had of playing in the morning snow was still something that went ahead.
"Teddie," Mason whispered, crawling up the bed. He pulled back the covers and, grinning, shook her shoulder. "Come on, Ted, it's Christmas! I want to play in the snow."
"We aren't at home, though," Teddie said, rolling over and sitting up. She rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Can't we skip it, just once?"
Mason looked scandalised.
Teddie giggled and shook her head. "Fine," she sighed. "Go get dressed, and remember to dress warm and to be quiet! It's still early. We don't want to wake the others."
"Got it," Mason said. He clambered down from the four-poster bed and scampered off into his bedroom. The two bedrooms were separated by a single door on the far side of the room. Teddie was thankful to Marcus for making sure she and Mason were so close together. It wasn't the same as sharing a bedroom, but at least she knew he was close by if they needed each other.
Stretching, Teddie checked the magical clock on her bedside table and bit back a yawn. She'd only been asleep for five hours, according to that. But tradition was tradition, and she and Mason had a snowball fight every Christmas morning at dawn. Just because they weren't at their own house shouldn't have changed that.
Once she was dressed, Teddie wandered into Mason's bedroom just as he was pulling on a woollen hat and gloves. He was decked in his warmest clothes, some of which Daphne had bought him as an early birthday present, and his face was already red from the heat he was packing.
"Let's get you outside before you overheat," Teddie said, biting back a laugh.
Mason caught his reflection in the mirror and snorted. "I look like a rosy posy," he teased.
Teddie laughed quietly and opened his bedroom door. It led out onto the first-floor landing, Daphne, Blaise, and Theo also had rooms on this floor, as well as Marcus, Adrian, and Derrick. Ursula and her husband were on the second floor, while Daphne's parents occupied a guest room on the third floor.
Pressing a finger to lips, Teddie ushered Mason passed the door labelled 'Marcus' and down the stairs. They crept, as quietly as possible, hoping that there were no creaking steps and into the grand entrance hall. It looked just as empty as it had done the previous night after they had been announced by Mo Flint.
"Oi, where are you going?" Teddie whispered urgently to Mason. "The door is this way!" she pointed to the massive set of double doors to her left.
"Hang on a sec," Mason said, stepping towards a slightly ajar door to his right. He pushed it open a bit more and carefully peered inside.
"Mason!" Teddie hissed.
Mason disappeared into the room and, after a couple of seconds, Teddie followed him. Her intent was to scold him for snooping around in someone else's house, but her scold became lost on her tongue as she realised the room they had stepped into was the library. It was almost as big as the rest of the house, with hundreds up hundreds of books stacked high in tall bookcases.
"Holy -" Mason said, his eyes as big as saucers as he looked up and down.
Teddie rolled her eyes. "So much for the snowball fight," she said, untying her scarf.
"There's time for that later," Mason said, hurrying over to the nearest bookcase. He unravelled his scarf from his neck and dropped it over a nearby chair. "Do you think they'll mind if I look through these?" he asked.
"I don't know, Mason, it's wrong to snoop through other people's things," Teddie said. "Mum and Dad won't be happy, and Mr and Mrs Flint have been good to us. Maybe we should wait, and then ask when everyone is awake later? It's only courtiers."
Mason pouted and looked up at the rows of books. He wanted so badly to just dive straight in.
"Have at it, Mason."
Teddie and Mason jumped and whirled around in alarm. Marcus stood in the library doorway. He was clad in a pair of pyjama bottoms and a thin quidditch t-shirt, and his short hair stood at odd angles, a clear sign that he had just woken up.
"Sorry," Teddie apologised, quickly. "We didn't mean to wake you. I thought we were quieter. We definitely weren't snooping. We were heading outside, but Mason found this place and got distracted, and -"
Marcus chuckled. "Stop apologising," he said, shaking his head, "and you didn't wake me. Snoopy did. He said that he'd seen you coming down the stairs, and was concerned that something was wrong. He didn't want to startle you, so he came and got me instead."
Teddie blushed and looked down. "Sorry," she mumbled. She felt terribly guilty for waking him, even though she hadn't done it personally.
"Seriously, Ted, it's fine," Marcus said. "Theo told me about how you and Mason have a snowball fight every Christmas morning before dawn. I'm not that surprised that you'd continue the tradition this year, despite not being at home."
"You're welcome to join us," Teddie said. She looked around at the sound of a squeak and saw Mason climbing a ladder. He took a book from the fourth shelf and climbed back down, settling himself into an armchair and propping the book open on his lap. She rolled her eyes and turned back to Marcus. "Or rather me," she added. "I don't think he's going to be moving anytime soon."
Marcus chuckled again and met her gaze. "Let me go change," he said. "I'll meet you back here in ten minutes."
Teddie nodded and waited as he left the room, she then turned to Mason. "Reading anything interesting?" she asked.
"Most Macabre Monstrosities," Mason answered.
"Magical monsters?" Teddie asked.
Mason smiled. "You have your weird quirks, I have mine," he said.
"Just don't give yourself nightmares," Teddie said. "I'm going back to school next week, I don't want Mum writing to me and saying that you're not sleeping because of something you've read."
"Scouts honour," Mason said, saluting his sister.
Teddie ruffled his hair and looked around as the door opened. Marcus shuffled inside. He was fully clothed and tucking his scarf inside his jacket when he pushed the door open.
"I did try to wake Adrian and Derrick," Marcus said. "But they'd sleep through an explosion." He chuckled.
Teddie cracked a smile. "It's okay," she said, shaking her head. "I don't think they could handle another defeat. I'm actually quite surprised that you're accepting another challenge."
"You caught me off guard last time," Marcus said. "It won't happen again."
"We'll see," said Teddie, her eyes glinting mischievously. "Have fun, Mason, and remember, stay here!"
Mason traced a cross over his heart, although his eyes never left the pages of his book. "Good luck, Marcus," he said. "You'll need it."
Teddie chuckled and left the library, heading towards the double doors.
"Any advice, Mason?" Marcus asked. "I mean, have you or anyone ever beat your sister in a snowball fight?"
"I'm usually always on her side," Mason said. "But, I will tell you to watch your six, Teddie is known for being very sneaky. She'll wait and watch as you tire yourself out, and then she'll move in for the final attack."
Marcus considered his words and then nodded. "Thanks, mate," he said, leaving the room. He followed Teddie across the hall and opened front doors.
The cold air hit them and they both shivered.
"Are we making another deal?" Marcus asked.
"Nope," said Teddie. "This isn't a competition, it's just for fun." She turned to Marcus and held out her hand. "Although I will say, let the best snake win."
Marcus gripped her hand and shook it. "To the best snake," he echoed.
Teddie grinned and, like a flash, run off into the frozen morning.
~X~
Later that morning, Teddie and Marcus returned to the house. Neither of them had won the snowball fight, even though Marcus did realise what Mason had meant when he said Teddie was sneaky in her tactics. Many times he found himself wearing down as he tried to catch Teddie out, but she never seemed to miss him.
"It's actually quite easy," Teddie said, ridding herself of her scarf and hat. "Getting someone else to defeat themselves. All you have to do is strike, and then hold back. Many snakes do it, ironically."
Marcus chuckled and shut the door on the icy winds. He was pink-faced, and so was Teddie, but neither was sure if it was because of the cold outside or from laughing.
"There you two are!"
Teddie and Marcus looked up to see Adrian and Daphne coming towards them.
"Where've you been?" Daphne asked. "Everyone's been looking for you."
"Well, you didn't look far," said Teddie. "We were only outside."
"You had a snowball fight without us?" Adrian asked.
"Hey, I tried to wake you!" Marcus defended. "You and Derrick were dead to the world."
Teddie laughed. "Besides, you can't blame Marcus, initially it was meant to be just me and Mason," she explained. "It's a Christmas tradition for us to have a snowball fight every Christmas morning before dawn."
"Let me guess, Mason discovered the library before you could get him outside?" Daphne asked, smiling.
"Got it in one," Teddie nodded. "Is he still in there, the library, I mean?"
Daphne shook her head. "He's in the dining room with the others," she said. "We're waiting on you pair so we can have breakfast."
"Then we're opening gifts," Adrian added. "You can give Mason his presents, Ted, and we can then figure out a trip to Diagon Alley."
"The only thing Mason really needs his a wand," Teddie said. "He's going to be using my books from last year. My parents can't afford new books, so, unfortunately, Mason gets my old ones. Not that he doesn't probably know them all from memory, anyway," she added with a soft chuckle.
Adrian, Daphne, and Marcus forced smiles. It was easy to forget that Teddie and Mason came from very little money. Especially because it didn't seem to bother the siblings. They rarely mentioned living in poverty, and always seemed to be happy with where they came from.
"Well, we can plan his trip to Ollivanders," Adrian said. "Come on, he needs his letter first."
"Alright. we're coming," Teddie said. She shrugged out of her cold, and slightly damp jacket, and followed Adrian and Daphne back down the hall.
Breakfast was a short affair. After it, Mo and Ursula Black dismissed the friends to the family room where they sat in front of a giant Christmas Tree decorated mostly in gold and silver tinsel and baubles. Mason had to crane his neck in an attempt to even see the top of the tree.
"How big is it, exactly?" Mason asked Marcus.
Marcus shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "It's definitely a lot bigger than last year, that's for sure."
"Let me guess," said Teddie, exasperatedly. "Because of me?"
Marcus smiled sheepishly as the others laughed.
"You need to tell your parents that I don't deserve special treatment," said Teddie.
"That's easier said than done," said Marcus. "Especially when it comes to my mother. She really seems to like you, and telling her not to spoil you is going to be difficult. She's always wanted a daughter."
"Why doesn't she try for one?" Mason asked.
Teddie shoved him, wrinkling her nose. Mason giggled.
Marcus shook his head, although he couldn't help but smile. "Trust me, she and dad have tried," he said. "Mum can't carry girls'."
"Oh," said Mason, apologetically. "Sorry."
"It's okay," Marcus shrugged.
Teddie shuffled closer to her friend and rested her head on his shoulder. "She could always adopt a daughter," she suggested. "I'm assuming the Wizarding world has an adoption agency?"
"It does," Adrian said. "But it's a lot harder to adopt a child here. The system is really confusing."
"How do you -" Mason started. He cut himself off and then shook his head. "Never mind. Not my business."
Teddie sighed and looked back at the tree. "Okay, changing the subject," she said, reaching for the first neatly wrapped box under the tree. "Presents!" she read the name and tossed it across the group at Derrick.
"That's my mother's handwriting," Derrick said, inspecting the name card.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Teddie asked. "Open it."
Derrick saluted, much to Teddie's amusement, and tore into the wrapping paper. He opened the box and pulled out a brand new pair of Quidditch gloves.
"Considering your last pair are trashed," Adrian said. "These will come in handy for the rest of the season."
"Especially when you consider the fact that I didn't trash my last pair," Derrick shot back.
Adrian glared at his friend.
Teddie laughed and shook her head.
"Alright, next up," said Marcus, reaching for the next box. It was wrapped in brown paper with the name 'Mason' wrote on the card. But what caught Marcus' attention were the air holes in the lid.
Teddie caught Marcus' eye and reached for the box. "That's my gift," she said, pulling the box towards her.
"Why are there holes in the lid?" Marcus asked.
"Because what's inside needs oxygen to survive," Teddie said, sarcastically. She stuck her tongue out at Marcus and slid the box, carefully, across the floor to her brother. "Here. Merry Christmas."
Just like Marcus, Mason too was confused by the air holes. "Um…" he said, carefully tearing the paper and lifting the lid. He gasped and reached inside, pulling out a small pale green and white toad. "Oh! He's so adorable!"
Teddie grinned as she watched her brother coo over the toad. She figured the creature would be a perfect companion for Mason whilst he was at Hogwarts.
"But, I don't understand," Mason said. "We can't have any more animals at home. Your snakes prevent it."
"Luckily, Morgana, Merlin, and Priscilla don't eat toads," Teddie said. "He's not toxic, I checked, so he can be handled. Plus, he's only going to be at home for a couple of weeks during the summer."
Mason frowned at his sister. "Huh?" he asked. "What do you mean? Where's he going to be the rest of the time?"
Looking around at her friends, Teddie saw each of them sharing identical grins. She reached into her jumper pocket and pulled out an envelope. "Well, I was thinking you could bring him to school with you," she said, presenting the letter to her brother.
"School?" Mason repeated. He took the envelope and inspected the curvy writing on the front. Silence enveloped the group as Mason took in the inscription, his eyes growing wide with each word. When he had finished, he looked up at Teddie, checking to make sure this wasn't a joke.
"I'm serious," Teddie said. "McGonagall gave me the letter before I -" she broke off as Mason launched himself across the circle at her, his arms winding tightly around her neck and knocking her over backwards.
Teddie laughed and hugged her brother back.
He was a wizard.
He was going to Hogwarts.