Remember I update by the year but it has multiple parts, so be checking what chapter you're on so you don't lose your place. Please, please , please drop a comment on what you think. Thanks guys!
The day after Christmas I was bombarded with letters from the girls talking about the dance. I suppose because of the turns of events, or maybe just because I was getting some peace and quiet for once, all my excitement about the dance had worn off. I sat at the dining table tapping my quill against a blank sheet of paper as I tried to figure out what to write the girls.
"You're tapping is driving me insane." Cad looked up from the homework he was supposed to be doing.
"Sorry, I'm trying to think."
"Writing Louk?" he tried to keep the tone out of his voice, and I decided to ignore it.
"Sort of. I don't think I want to go to Damian's family's party, but I don't want to offend him or Louk by not going."
"You don't want to go?"
"I think with everything I'd just really rather curl up with a book and relax."
"When do you not want to curl up with a book?"
"Fair." I sighed. "I guess I'll just grit my teeth and bear it."
"No! I mean, if you don't go that means I have an excuse not to go."
"You don't want to go?"
"Not really. Adult parties aren't my thing."
"You wouldn't mind staying here with boring old me?" I teased and he just threw a wad of parchment at my face.
"What do you think I've been doing all break? Maybe I'll convince Damian to make a bet on me doing my homework and make a few Galleons."
"Careful, we wouldn't want him cleaning you out again." I smirked as I started a letter to Damian.
I kept it brief and the details light, but explained enough of my situation to hopefully justify my absence. Louk got the most detailed explanation with a full play-by-play of my interactions with my brother but I knew it would do little good. All that mattered to him was I was ducking out on time with him while I was staying with Cad, and I was probably dead to him. I had a heavy heart as I tied the letters to Matilda's leg and sent her into the cold wind. I sighed as I closed the window, curling up on the couch and staring into the fire.
The shop was likewise closed so the Mervins were wrapped up in their different tasks. Tempy seemed to notice my melancholiness and asked me to play a game of wizard's chest in which she beat me soundly. It started Cad wanting to play the winner, and then their parents going after that. It turned into a mini chess competition with his Dad pitted against Tempy in the finale.
It was a wonderful distraction and it was quite fun watching Tempy carefully calculate her way to a victory against her Father who took it all in stride.
"My little genius." he shook his head, offering his hand to her. "Good job, princess, you've thoroughly thrashed me."
"You did a great job, Daddy." she ignored his hand and hugged him, bringing a genuine smile to his face.
"Well I say this is cause for celebration." their Mom stood from her place on the couch. "Why don't we go to the Cauldron for dinner?"
"Really?" both her kids jumped up with her.
"It's too late to start dinner now anyways, and I say we've all earned a treat."
"Move!" Cad shoved his sister out of the way to run to the coat rack.
They argued over each other as they pulled on their coats and boots, me following the adults at a much more restrained pace. With varying degrees of wrestling we all eventually got layered up enough to walk onto the snowy street of Diagon Alley. It wasn't as dead as it had been Christmas Day, but the traffic was notably lacking from the usual crowds. The Leaky Cauldron had a fair amount of people in it, and the warmth from the roaring fire felt amazing after the biting wind. We put our coats on the rack by the door before picking a table as close to the hearth as we could. Dinner for the day was a delicious clam chowder with fluffy rolls and complimentary Christmas crackers. Mrs. Mervin made us place them to the sides of our plates and finish eating before we opened them, and Tempy was shaking her knee through the whole meal she was so excited.
We talked about small topics like school and owning a wand shop through the meal, and it was nice not to have to answer any awkward questions about my family I knew they must be wanting to ask. I was mopping up the bottom of my bowl with a roll when Mr. Mervin suddenly cleared his throat.
"Oh Cad, I forgot to tell you, I'll be heading out Saturday to go get some more wand wood. This rush really took out a lot of hawthorn wands, and I want to have a good stock before you go back to school."
"Okay, I'll pack my bag."
"We should be back in time for your party on New Year's, but I can't be sure."
"It's alright, I'd rather go with you than to the party anyway." Cad shrugged as he finished his meal, wiping his hands on his napkin before grabbing his Christmas cracker with his sister.
After the pink smoke that had engulfed our table cleared away, I turned to Mr. Mervin. "So how exactly do you get wand cores into the wood?"
"Well, that's a trade secret I'm afraid." he gave me an apologetic smile. "Every wand maker has their own preference and the technique is passed from generation to generation."
"Did you learn from Mr. Ollivander?"
"No, I learned from my Dad, who learned from his Dad alongside Mr. Ollivander."
"And you're teaching Cad?"
"The best I can." he cast a glance at his son, who was terrorizing Tempy with the large stick bug that had been in his Christmas cracker.
"I'm sure it's an uphill battle most days." I chuckled as we all stood to get our coats and leave.
The weekend passed somewhat calmly, with an increase in owl traffic as both the shop got more orders and our friends got bored of their holidays. Keeli was writing me every day, and the others were almost matching her save for Louk. I still hadn't heard from him at all since I'd told him I wasn't going to the party and I was exceedingly nervous. The girls had taken the news well enough, disappointed but understanding, but I wasn't at all sure how he'd be. It did nothing to ease the depressive cloud I began to descend in, not at all helped by the fact Cad left with his Dad just a few days after Christmas.
It was sort of nice just being all us girls during the nights, but the days were somewhat lackluster without Cad's jokes. I helped their Mom in the shop downstairs where I could since she was doing it on her own but business wasn't as fast as it had been before the holidays so even that could be boring at times.
Tuesday morning rolled around and I got up early as usual, watching the shop while Mrs. Mervin made a quick breakfast for us all. No one came around as they never did very early anymore, and she came down a few minutes later with a breakfast sandwich to relieve me. I returned upstairs and set my homework across the table, but for once my heart wasn't in it. I flipped absentmindedly through my Care of Magical Creatures book until lunch when I made some quick soup with Tempy for us all. I finally admitted I wasn't getting any work done so I packed up my things and settled into the couch to read my new potions book which seemed to be the only thing able to hold my attention for longer than ten minutes.
At seven the shop closed and Mrs. Mervin came upstairs, Tempy and I going to sit at the kitchen table and talk with her as she made dinner. The pork steaks smelled heavenly and I took note of the abundance of food as she asked us to set the table. We were just sitting down when a large crack in the alley made each of us jump. Cracks in Diagon Alley weren't inherently uncommon but we all seemed to know who that specific crack belonged to.
Tempy and I bolted from the table and dashed madly down the stairs to see the two Mervin men coming in through the front door. We all out tackled Cad in a hug, his fall being slightly broken by his large backpack full of camping gear.
"Good thing I offered to carry the wand wood." Mr. Mervin smiled as he moved past us to greet his wife.
"Better be careful, I might think you two missed me." Cad gave us a sneaky smile.
"You wish." I chuckled as I hugged him tighter.
"It was marvelous having some peace and quiet." Tempy agreed, openly hanging onto his neck as he moved to stand.
They quickly set their camping gear in Mr. Mervin's office before coming up and sharing dinner with us, telling us of their trip. They'd had to travel to South Dakota, America for the hawthorn Mr. Mervin was looking for and Cad was full of stories of American wizards. He told us all sorts of things through dinner and even after we were done Tempy and I sat in the living room and listened to him some more.
"They call Muggles no-maj, yeah I know, and they still have some pretty weird Muggle laws."
"They have laws about Muggles?" Tempy asked.
"Yeah. Even though their magical academy there, Ilvermorny, was co-founded by a Muggle."
"I didn't know that." I mused. "I wonder what school is like there."
"No idea, but I found it odd. It was only found in the 1700's or whatever so I doubt they even have it figured out by now."
"It's not as old as Hogwarts but it's still, what, three hundred and something years old? I'm sure they aren't still 'figuring it out'." I rolled my eyes.
"Hogwarts had already been around for like, forever, so I'm sure in comparison they were still figuring it out."
"Just because somewhere is older doesn't mean it's better."
"Yeah, like Knockturn Alley." Tempy wrinkled her nose. "I don't care how long it's been here, it's scary."
"Amazing you mean. That place is great."
"You also think the Forbidden Forest is great."
"Hey, it will be, don't worry." he gave me a little smile as we finally broke the conversation up, each pursuing our own ventures.
Cad was catching up on the Quidditch news he'd missed while I was finally able to settle into reading. Tempy read in her Herbology book a little but at about ten she returned to her room with monumental yawns. It was so comforting to have Cad back I almost didn't want to read, casting glances up to him every few seconds. As the clock chimed midnight I nearly jumped being lost in thought.
"Happy new year." Cad smiled at me.
"Oh right, it's new years day isn't it?"
"What do you think the others are doing?"
"Probably watching fireworks. If you were there I'd say you would be trying to shove a firework down someone's shirt."
"Come on, I'd be much more creative than that."
"I guess Amber is just going to have to bring enough mischief for the both of you."
"She's probably too wrapped up in Damian to notice anything." he rolled his eyes, and not in a good natured way.
"Uh, problems?"
"Not really, I guess. It's no business of mine who she likes."
"I didn't think you minded Damian."
"It's probably an association honestly. Just seems like recently being friends with Slytherin's never works out well."
"I don't think I am friends with a Slytherin anymore." I sighed, closing my book. "Louk hasn't written me back."
"He might just be busy?" he tried to offer, but his tone didn't inspire much hope.
I just shrugged, not really having anything else to say. Cad hopped up off the couch, offering me his hand.
"You know what else they're probably doing? Dancing."
"No thanks, I had enough near death experiences with you at the Ball."
"Come now, don't be a wet blanket." he took my hand and dragged me up, switching the radio to a music station instead of Quidditch commentary.
It was an upbeat Christmas jingle and he swung me with enthusiasm around the living room, drawing a few laughs from me as he tried his best to throw me in the fireplace to the beat of the music. We linked our hands and did a little step off routine we'd seen at the ball but much faster since this music was predominantly saxophones and happiness. He spun me around a few times and I spun him around, having to jump to get my arm over his head as he seemed to be constantly growing taller. We just outright spun in a circle for a few seconds and I finally broke down in full-fledged giggles. His smile was a mile wide as the song finally toned down, admitting a more solemn Christmas carol. Without thinking he pulled me closer and put his hand on my waist, gently swaying us to the music.
"Don't tell anyone, but I might have missed you just a little bit." I grumbled, trying to wipe the smile off my face.
"Because Merlin forbid you miss one of your best friends."
"I have a reputation to uphold, you know. I'm a Ravenclaw, I have to care about books more than people."
"You do care more about books than people."
"See? The stereotype persists."
"You're something else." he shook his head.
"It seems you like those camping trips with your Dad."
"Oh yeah, it's fun. I can get away with a lot more out there."
"It's just a bonus those trips are also the reason you know half you do about Care of Magical Creatures."
"You only think that because of one creature. Honestly, Bowtruckles are pretty uninteresting. It's only because I answer one question right and suddenly I'm the Bowtruckle expert."
"Well, you kinda are the Bowtruckle expert."
"At least I'm an expert on something."
"Hey, you'll always be the first I go to if I need to prank someone."
"I'd say I'd come to you if I had a potions emergency, but that's already kind of happened."
"And it wasn't an emergency. It was more of a strong desire."
"Did you not have fun?" he beamed at me.
"I guess I did." I broke eye contact, looking over at the fire for something to do. "If nothing else, you all owe me pretty big now."
"Hey, free flying lessons anytime you want them."
"Hard pass."
"I really don't think you'd mind it if you were with someone who knew what they were doing."
"I just feel so vulnerable on a broom. It's a tiny match of wood and it's keeping me sixty feet in the air. There's too much that could go wrong."
"Like what?"
"The wood could warp, causing the broom to dart off in random directions. The spells on it could fail or wear off, depleting the safety measures on the broom while I'm in the air. A strong gust of wind could come by and-"
"Just stop." he was laughing again. "You really think of everything, don't you?"
"I doubt it. I don't know enough about brooms to know everything that could go wrong."
"Do you think you'd ever trust me to take you flying?"
I fidgeted. "I don't know, it really scares me."
"You'll never get over your fears if you don't face them."
"Spoken like a true Gryffindor." I thought for a second before sighing. "I could try, I really would, but I'm not sure."
"I'll take what I can get." he smiled.
I realized the music had stopped and we'd been dancing to commercials for a little while. Something in Cad's eye told me he'd known this for a while but he didn't move to seperate and I didn't either.
"You know, it's usually a tradition to kiss on New Year's."
"At midnight. You're a little late." I nodded to the clock which read ten past.
"Better late than never?" he offered, raising his eyebrow to ask the question I wasn't sure either of us could say out loud.
I thought for a second before leaning up to press a kiss to his cheek. "Maybe midnight another day."
"You know I'll take you up on that." despite his failure he was smiling a mile wide.
"I think I'm going to go to bed."
"In just a second." he took my hands and dramatically spun me around, dipping me down with a flourish like a salsa dancer. He kissed my cheek quickly before pulling me up and spinning me around again. "Alright, you may go now."
"You're something else." I giggled, grabbing my book before heading to Tempy's room.
The last few days of break went by quickly and Sunday morning I traveled with the Mervin's to the train platform at King's Cross Station. I gave Tempy a huge bear hug as Mr. Mervin loaded our trunks onto the train, Mrs. Mervin scolding Cad to make sure he did his homework this semester.
"I had a lot of fun this break, Tempy. Thanks for teaming up with Cad to help me out."
"It was nice having someone around besides Cad for company. Thanks for all your help."
"Don't get into too much trouble without us."
"Wouldn't dream of it." she smiled as we broke apart.
"Later, squirt." Cad ruffled his sister's hair.
"Loser." she grimaced as she shoved him away.
"You two be good, and look after each other." Mrs. Mervin hugged me and then her son again.
"Aw come on Mom, you've already hugged me." he made a big show of fixing his hair.
"I'll always miss my camping partner." Mr. Mervin stepped down from the train. "I expect we'll plan a big trip over the summer for when you come back."
"Sure thing, Dad."
Mr. Mervin extended his hand to his son instead of hugging him, and Cad hesitated for a second before taking it.
"I'm going to miss you son."
"I'll miss you too, Dad."
They nodded to each other before we finally parted ways, Cad holding the door to the compartment we usually stayed in open for me.
"What was that about?"
"Oh, nothing."
I raised my eyebrow and he sighed.
"I suppose they'll be getting nothing by you from now on, huh?"
"Nope."
"I guess you could say my Dad...doesn't shake hands with a man unless he trusts him."
"Well, congratulations then." I smiled as I walked past him.
Everyone else was already in the compartment, us arriving just a few minutes before seven, and they all looked up to give us warm smiles save for one. Louk had purposefully placed himself in the corner next to Damian and Amber sat across from them, so I left with the seat between Keeli and Cad. We all exchanged hellos until the train whistle blew, then delved into deeper conversations.
"So, how was the party?" I asked Damian, who just nodded.
"It was good, pretty fun for an adult party."
"Sorry I couldn't make it."
"It's alright. I understand you have family stuff to take care of. My parents talked about maybe making it a yearly thing, so I'm sure they'll be more."
"How did, uh, everyone like it?" I flicked my eyes to Louk, who was staring out the window.
Damian got the hint luckily. "You know, some people had more fun than others."
"Is everything alright, with your family I mean?" Amber leaned forward to see past Cad.
I shrugged. "More or less. It wasn't the best holiday I've ever had."
"You wound me." Cad dramatically held his hand over his heart, falling sideways onto Amber's lap.
I slapped his leg. "You know what I meant."
"How was living off of Diagon Alley? Cad makes it out to be a fate worse than the Kiss." Amber tried to dislodge her housemate onto the floor.
"It's not so bad. A lot of people and the bell of the shop door can be annoying until you get used to it, but I liked it. Makes going to Diagon Alley a lot less of an event, however."
"Well you have a good long break of it until we meet up this summer." Amber shrugged. "I think I convinced Damian to invite us all over for a Quidditch match on his family' pitch this summer too."
"We'll see." was his short reply, but it didn't dampen the Gryffindor's smile even a little bit.
"It's good to be back." Amber sighed contentedly, leaning against the window as she stretched her feet across Cad, Keeli, and I's laps.
"Sure didn't miss some things." I chuckled as I shoved her legs off. "I'm still not your footstool."
"Spoil sport." she pouted as she turned the right way in her seat. "I can't wait to get back and see what everyone got for their holidays. Last year Tracey Wracky, a girl in the year above me, got one of those Weasley portable swamps and let me tell you it's never been more fun going down to breakfast."
"They put a portable swamp in Gryffindor Tower?!" Keeli gasped.
"You can just say 'the tallest tower'." Amber smirked. "Yeah, right in the common room. We tried to keep it from Professor Potter but he has a sixth sense for fun. It was only up for a few days before he came and took it down."
"I mean, we had that replica of that Giant War in the common room last year was it? First year?" I flipped a page in my book without looking up.
"Yeah and I thought that was bad. I kept stepping on those tiny clubs and slipping." Keeli rubbed her head at the memory.
Amber waved away our comparison. "That's boring history stuff, this was just a fun prank."
"I hear the Weasleys put one of those swamps in the castle when they left during the Weasley Incident." Cad got a dreamy look on his face. "They set off one thousand and one fireworks, they put that portable swamp in all the corridors, and dive bombed the Headmistress at the time, throwing Dungbombs on her head."
I rolled my eyes. "You know none of that happened."
"Of course it did!" he seemed personally offended. "George Weasley told me so himself! You know how much of a valued customer I am at Weasley's. Would he lie to me?"
"I think Aim's is just saying maybe time has made things a little foggy. I can't imagine anyone having that much courage." Keeli shook her head. "I hear the Headmistress back then was horrible."
"Yeah, some of the stories they tell about her are horrid." Cad lost the dreamy look. "They say she tortured students, even sent some kids into the Forest to feed the giants."
I shuddered at the thought of the troll we'd run into. "No thanks. I'll take McGonogall's glares any day."
"Probably a cake walk compared to what Hogwarts went through during the War." Damian got a darker look on his face. "Death Eater's teaching classes, Voldemort himself waltzing through the hallways. I can't even imagine."
I shook my head. "Let's not talk about it until we have to. The Second Wizarding War lessons aren't until fifth year."
"Yeah, you're right." Damian shook his head a little. "It's not so bad now, even if I do have to take Herbology. Headmistress McGonagall seems alright."
"I don't know." Amber lowered her voice slightly. "She can turn into a cat and I have a feeling she uses it to spy on us."
"That's ridiculous….right?" Keeli finished on an unsure note. "I mean, there has to be a rule against that. Right?"
I shrugged. "I haven't seen anything. As long as she's registered with the Ministry she's free to change whenever and however she wants. At least we know what her cat looks like, right?"
"I don't, do you?" Amber seemed a little crestfallen as I shook my head, glancing around at the others who likewise were unsure. "Oh my God, she could totally spy on us!"
"I'm sure the Headmistress has more important things to do than spy on teenagers." Louk rolled his eyes. "She's one of the Minister's most trusted advisors for starters."
"Still, don't think I'll be trusting any cats anytime soon." Amber glared out the compartment door like one was going to appear out of thin air.
The train gave it's warning whistle that we were getting close and we all simultaneously groaned.
"These train rides seem to get shorter and shorter." Cad mumbled as he tried to pick up all the wrappers from his candy binge.
"You're telling me. I only got through two pages because you lot had to keep it chatty." I teased, snapping my book shut to shove into my bag.
"Forgive us for enjoying your conversation. Next time we won't make that mistake." he shot back, throwing one of the wrappers at my head.
As we filed off the train to head for the carriages I made sure I was put next to Louk, clearing my throat before speaking softly. "Do you need any help with your homework, Louk?"
He cast me a glance. "I think I can manage by myself."
Damian must have been eavesdropping, and his elbow 'accidently' caught Louk in the ribs as we stepped down from the train.
"I guess I might could use a little help on the potion's essay."
"Tonight in the library then." I nodded as he hurried in front of me.
We took the carriages back up to the school, splitting for our separate common rooms to relax before dinner. Keeli cast a curious glance at my book as I shoved it in my bag to head to the Great Hall for dinner.
"Isn't that a banned book?"
"Well, not 'banned' just 'highly discouraged'. I'm not going to be flashing in front of the Headmistress but I don't think I'll get in trouble for having it."
After dinner I bade Keeli a farewell, breaking off from the other Ravenclaws and slipping on my ring for good measure. The library doors were as locked as ever and I had to wait nearly ten minutes before I heard footsteps approaching.
"Louk?" I whispered.
"Yeah." his figure appeared as he waved his wand, dispelling his illusion. He waved it again at the library door and we ducked in, locking it after us.
We made our way to the table in the back, unloading our bags as we sat down. His Sneakoscope was placed next to the lantern and we silently divided the winter work between the two of us. Despite his words on the train it seemed he hadn't done any of it but I refrained from asking him why. His watch ticked past midnight and towards one before we heard the Sneakoscope light up, the library doors creaking open a few seconds later. By the time Filch was even halfway down the first aisle we were already packed, disillusioned, and hiding in a dark corner. As usual he didn't pay us much attention and his rounds were finished in just a few minutes. Even after we heard the heavy doors close once again Louk's arm kept me in the dark corner, his wand waving over the both of us to make us visible to each other again. It didn't do much good, as the library was pitch dark anyways, so he lit his wand before letting out a slow breath.
"I'm...sorry to hear you had a difficult break."
"Did you get my letter?"
"Yeah."
"Then you'll know it had nothing to do with Cad why I skipped the party. I'm really sorry, Louk, I was looking forward to going but I just didn't have it in me."
"Is what you said true? Your brother hit you?"
I looked down at my feet. "Yeah."
"What did you do?"
"I hexed him."
He let out a sort of breathy chuckle and I looked up to see him slowly shaking his head. He met my eyes and smiled, brushing the bottom of my chin with his finger. "That's my girl."
I hoped the blue light of his wand wouldn't betray my blush as the tension melted a little. "It was more in self defense, nothing to do with you."
"Let's just hope I never meet this brother, eh?" he sighed, taking my hand and leading me out of the library.
We slunk through the corridors until we got to the stairs where we paused. He leaned forward and kissed my forehead simultaneously reaching into the pocket of my robes to pull my ring out.
"Don't get caught."
I smiled as I slipped the ring on and made my way up the stairs.
