Dad and I stayed outside the house as it was becoming too clustered with everyone else inside, putting up a tent each out the back and came in every morning for breakfast. My wedding duties of the maid of honour now kept me busy as I discussed with Madame Delacour and Fleur how to do her hair, how to properly arrange the dress skirts, the floral arrangements and things such as that. All the while we talked in French as I had become a little rusty, but soon it came back and Gabrielle was glad for someone other than her family to talk to as she knew very little English, so I took it upon myself to help teach her so that she could at least get through a small conversation by the time of the wedding.
When I wasn't wedding planning, I was helping Molly prepare for Harry's birthday which was the day before. Seventeen was a very important birthday in the wizarding community as it was the day one came of age. Usually the celebration would be planned by the direct and closest family members, which would have been Harry's parents, but since my dad was his only wizard living relative left as his godfather, it fell upon us to make certain that it was a wonderful day for him. Molly took it all in her stride and spent the day before baking a massive cake which she planned to turn into a snitch for him with golden icing whilst I worked on making the silver wings out of sugar glass, carefully constructing every shape and line with my wand.
Dad left the Burrow in order to get Harry presents and I did the same when I had the time, popping out and making the preparations in order to cook his favourite foods and desserts, as well as sennding out a secret message to some of our friends that we would be celebrating Harry's birthday and giving them the time so that they could come if they were able to. If they couldn't, they sent gifts instead along with letters wishing him a very happy birthday instead. My own present for him was something…rather special, and required a great deal of concentration and highly advanced magic to make it work, and several times it hit a few snags which took time to unravel until, a mere hour before midnight when Harry was due to turn seventeen, I finished it.
Tired but satisfied, I carefully placed the gift into a box which I then wrapped with silver paper and secured it with a gold ribbon then placed it with all the others. I slept with a feeling of excitement all through the night before waking up early and practically sprinting from my bed and into the house in order to get to the kitchen, firing up the breakfast and singing off key in a cheerful tune. "Someone's in a good mood." Bill said as he came downstairs with Monsieur Delacour not far behind him, chuckling and conducting my terrible singing.
"It's Harry's birthday, of course I'm in a good mood! Oh I do hope he likes his gifts, this will probably be the most he's seen in his entire life, dad and I went a little overboard…" I fussed as I started cooking bacon, sausages, eggs as well as pancakes, warming up the muffins and going through my usual routine of a full scale breakfast whenever something special was happening that day.
"I'm sure everything will be fine, Mia. You're very good to him, you know." Bill assured me, ruffling my hair as he passed in order to sit down at the table.
"Ah yes, seventeen! The boy is to become a man, I 'ope 'e 'as a wonderful day! It is good that you mentioned it, dear Mia, I would 'ave been mortified to not give a gift on such a day!" Monsieur Delacour said to me so I smilingly told him that he was too kind and that Harry would have appreciated a mere congratulations, so it was thoughtful to also give him a gift to which Monsieur Delacour waved his hand and assure me it was no trouble at all and that it was a shame he hadn't known before leaving France otherwise he would have brought a selection of French treats for Harry to try. "Next time, next time." Smiling, I supplied them both with breakfast and just as I finished trying to pour coffee for them both with Monsieur Delacour insisting that he should now serve me breakfast so that I could sit down, Molly came rushing down with her hair rather wild and struggling to pull on her cardigan.
"Oh! Oh well done Mia, such a good girl. I woke up when Arthur left but I must have gone straight back to sleep…I thought I'd be too late getting breakfast ready!" Promising her that it was my pleasure, Molly then chased me away so that I could eat as well and the smell of breakfast began to wake up everyone else and bring them downstairs.
"Mia, you'll make an excellent wife someday." Fred said to me as he helped himself to several rather fat pancakes, preferring the American style ones rather than the British, whilst Monsieur Delacour was enjoying the crepes that I had had a go at making. Dad fired a glare straight at Fred and looked like he was considering stabbing him with the fork in his hand.
"My Mia is too good for anyone." He announced bluntly, making Fred freeze whilst George and I snickered. I fussed over him, having finished my breakfast and was inspecting his injury to make sure it wasn't infected. The wound was clean but the gaping hole was slightly unnerving, I knew it frightened Gabrielle but she bravely did not make it obvious whilst around him, as I had explained to her already that a bad wizard had cursed it off during a fight without going into so many details. Dad and Monsieur Delacour were now talking about daughters and marriage, dad insisting that I was never going to marry anyone who didn't exceed his expectations, which were so high that I doubted anyone would even have a hope of reaching them, let alone exceeding them.
"You know, I reckon we could fix a false ear on." I finally said to George as I continued to inspect the wound, figuring it out in my head. "It'll be like Moody's eye, I could charm it to do all kinds of things like listen through walls and stuff. What do you think?"
"Well…I'll admit I do rather miss my ear. I'm just not the same without it, I mean, this ear is all right," he joked as he pulled on his right ear before then waving his hand over the left side of his head where his ear had been. "But here there's nothing left." Rolling my eyes I swatted him lightly whilst telling him not to make a joke about his ear in front of his mother, who was now glaring at him from the stove. Then Fred and George were making all the ear jokes they could come up with so in the end I just tittered my tongue and joined in, soon having everyone in stitches and even Molly managed a little smile until Harry came downstairs with Ron not far behind him, his stomach already rumbling loudly in want for breakfast which had no doubt been the reason he had roused himself from his bed so early.
"Harry! Happy birthday!" Quickly turning around I hugged him tightly, beaming as dad also stood up.
"Seventeen years ago to the day when I first met you, Harry. It's been quite the journey." He said as he too hugged Harry then shook his hand, stepping aside as Molly called over to him.
"Arthur told me to wish you a happy seventeenth, Harry. He had to leave early for work, but he'll be back for dinner. That's our present on top." She gestured to the huge stack of presents which made Harry's jaw drop and he just stood there staring at them until I gave him a nudge.
"You know, the point of presents is that you open them." He blinked at them again.
"But there's so many!"
"Yeah Harry, apparently you're actually quite likable. Who knew?" George supplied, pausing in sipping his coffee. Laughing at his face, I dropped my hands down on Harry's shoulders and steered him over to the presents so that he could start opening them, his hand reaching for the small box on top which Molly had pointed out as being from herself and Arthur. He opened it carefully to reveal a gold watch with stars circling around the face. It was a beautiful watch, though it looked like it had already seen a great deal of use, but Harry loved it immediately, and all the more when Molly explained what it meant.
"It's traditional to give a wizard a watch when he comes of age. Usually the wizard's next of kin gives it, but Sirius and Mia said that we could give that to you since they had other things in mind already. I'm afraid that one isn't new like Ron's, it was actually my brother Fabian's and he wasn't terribly careful with his possessions, it's a bit dented in the back but…" The anxious explanation Molly was giving soon became lost as Harry had gotten up and strode over to her in order to give her a very heartfelt hug, making dad and I share a smile with one another as she blinked then got a little teary eyed. Smiling at him, Molly patted his cheek and was so touched by the unspoken gratitude that she accidentally sent bacon flying out of the pan and towards the floor but I managed to catch it in time, flicking my wand to make it fly back.
"Happy birthday, Harry!" Hermione then came rushing down, her own present for Harry in her hands. "It's not much, but I hope you like it. What did you get him?" Asking Ron with a curious look as I helped Harry to put the watch onto his left wrist, Ron cleared his throat and quickly encouraged Harry to open Hermione's present next in a bid to avoid answering her question. It turned out to be a new Sneakoscope, which I thought to be a very useful and practical present. Other items included an enchanted razor from Bill and Fleur which Monsieur Delacour recognised and warned him to tell it very clearly what he wanted otherwise he'd end up bald, in so many words.
There were also chocolates from the Delacours themselves, more products from Fred and George of their latest creations which were yet to be revealed to the public, various assortments of sweets from members of the Order, Moody had even given him a rather interesting instrument which looked like a handheld telescope which could zoom in over incredible distances and intensify details so that, for instance, you could stand on the hill and look through the window of the Burrow and count how many freckles Ron had on his nose. Soon there was paper everywhere so I started to clear it away so that Harry had more room as he made his way through the tall stack of gifts until finally, the last gifts were from myself and dad.
We'd given him a brand new dark green, almost black cloak made from a soft, thick material lined with silk and a very smart collar lined with gold thread, two little stars sewn into the collar either side of the clasp which twinkled delicately. The clasp was also made from gold with a moonstone either side, clicking together to hold the cloak comfortably at the base of his throat so that it wouldn't feel like it was choking him, and I'd spelled it so that it would keep him at the perfect temperature, meaning it would warm him up when he was cold and cool him down if he was too hot. There were also gloves to match, made from the finest dragonskin with similar enchantments.
I'd also purchased him a new pair of muggle trainers as his were practically falling apart, and dad had gotten him a pair of dragonskin leather boots which he said were ideal for most occasions, whether it was a fancy dinner or racing through a boggy marsh, as they would always remain clean and would protect his feet as they were practically impenetrable. In addition to this, we had also got Harry a proper wand holster so that he didn't have to stuff his wand into his back pocket anymore, some more traditional items such as a new wizard's hat, a gold candle for him to light and bring him luck – purely superstitious, but still a widely practised tradition – as well as various other things that Harry should have received from his parents, but he only had us, so we stepped in.
Before Harry had even got to the last two gifts, he looked completely overwhelmed and rather choked up, looking at the two of us without being able to put it into words, so I gently urged him to open the last two as they required an explanation. He went for the smaller one first, a little box which held a gold key inside, so dad explained first since this was his own gift. "It's to a vault in Gringotts. Inside, you'll find…well. You'll find things I managed to salvage from your parents' house before I was taken in. Books, photos, your old toys, some of their ornaments, things like that. I would have put it in your vault, but of course I couldn't access it, so it's in ours. That's a copy of my key, and I want you to know you can go and have anything you want from inside. There's even…there's even your parents' wedding rings. They wanted them both to be left to you if anything happened to them. That much I knew."
"Sirius I…" Now that I was looking at him, I wondered if my final gift might be a little too much for Harry as he already looked like he was on the verge of tears but desperately trying to hide them. I could understand why this meant so much to him. He'd never really been celebrated much on his birthday until he entered the wizarding world, and to finally have a gathering with those he considered family and being given the possessions that had once belonged to his parents, it must have meant a great deal to him. Still, he firmly got up and shook dad's hand once, giving his fingers a strong squeeze to express his thoughts without words and I watched dad nod his head in understanding.
Now came my present. I watched whilst holding my breath as Harry opened up the box then picked it up, looking at it with slight recognition. "It's a rememberall." It did look like one, admittedly, spherical and made from glass with bronze bands around the surface in hoops, but it wasn't that. For one it was not filled with enchanted smoke, but rather with water which churned with silvery wisps inside it as Harry gave it a little shake.
"Not exactly." I revealed and as Harry started fiddling with the rings and moved them, a voice started to speak from within the orb which fluttered with a pale light which brightened as Harry blinked then turned the dial further, increasing the volume.
"…Harry…Harry look at me…look at mummy, Harry…good boy…aren't you mummy's precious little angel? Harry…here I am! Look James, look! I think he recognises me now, look he's smiling!" No one spoke as Lily Potter's voice filled the kitchen of the Burrow, not even the Delacours said a word as the sombre silence seemed to make them understand just how surreal this moment was. Not even Fred or George piped up to tease Harry for being called a 'precious little angel', knowing that now wasn't the time for jokes as then, James started to speak.
"He's handsome, looks just like me after all. Hello Harry, it's dada, look at me, not your mother, I'm going to be your favourite parent after all, we'll get into such trouble together and drive your mother quite mad. What do you think Padfoot? Reckon he's a Marauder?"
"We'll certainly make him into one, no questions asked. Come on Mia, don't be shy, this is Uncle James's boy, Harry. You two are going to be spending a lot of time together, so make sure you be nice to him."
"Howy?" The lisp of a little girl then spoke which I recognised as my own. All the while Harry listened, gripping the orb in his hand which neatly fit into his hand, I gingerly reached out and made him open his fingers so I could turn another ring and the light then intensified before shooting upwards like a beacon or a torch to show the scene of James and Lily leaning over Harry's crib from Sirius's point of view, seeing their glowing, smiling faces in a wide screen like image I had seen whilst living like a muggle. Television, they called it, and it was part of my inspiration for this gift. By using memories from dad, Uncle Remus and everyone else I could contact who had ever known Lily and James well, I'd created a portable pensieve like the one in Dumbledore's office.
"It's a pensieve." I explained as the memory ended and the image faded away. "If you look there are numbers on the centre ring, that controls which memory you want to see, this one here controls the volume and the third projects the image. You can even enter the memory, all you have to do is twist this dial here and it'll flatten into a bowl for you to put your head in, you can add more of your own memories in there and the numbers will continue counting. I took a lot of Remembering Potions to find memories I had of your parents and me meeting you as a baby, and I also got memories from my dad, Remus, a lot of people actually. There's over a hundred. There's ones of your parents at school, when they were together, their wedding, having you, being a family…I know it's not the same as having them with you, but I thought you might like to at least see them through other people's memories and find out for yourself what they were like."
All the while, Harry had said nothing, standing there and staring at the portable pensieve with such a grave silence that I started to worry, fretting that I'd upset him which was the last thing I wanted on his birthday. I needn't have worried though, because next thing I knew, Harry had put his arms around me in such a bone crushing hug I could barely breathe. No one spoke or barely even breathed in order to maintain the moment, a mixture of grief and joy which created a heavy pressure on everyone present, even to those who were not aware to the full extent of how precious these memories were to Harry.
It was a long while before he let me go whereby I managed a shaky smile, brushing at his hair affectionately and wishing him a happy birthday once more before I drew in a deep breath and turned away, looking for a means to get busy. "All done with breakfast? I'll clear that away for you Bill!" And then the moment had passed and a cheerful, bubbling atmosphere filled the kitchen. Hermione dashed off to pack all of Harry's things whilst Ginny pulled Harry away discreetly in order to talk to him privately whilst I busied myself, though I couldn't stop from smiling. As I passed dad, he leaned down and kissed my head, murmuring that my gift was probably something Harry will appreciate for the rest of his life and I did a great job with it.
Nothing could ruin my mood, which only perked up further when Charlie arrived later that morning, walking into the kitchen with a grin on his face and being greeted by a rush of redheads and myself. The twins and I laughed as Charlie was forced to endure a haircut from Molly who was taking no nonsense now, trimming it so that it was neat and even rather than ragged from where he'd left it to grow during his time out in Romania. I'd seen him only last year whilst I was travelling, having stopped in Romania in order to make further contacts and allies, as well as question whether it was possible to train dragons to fight on our side.
The answer? Probably not. Still, he'd been willing to give it a go and I ended up spending a month with him where we'd grown rather close. Closer than before, even. To him, I'd always been Fred and George's friend, now I was more of his friend too and possibly even solidified my place as a somewhat adopted younger sister. So whilst Charlie got his haircut and we laughed at him, he threatened to make us all go bald too to which I threatened if he dared, he'd wake up in the morning as a slug and I'd be boiling him in my cauldron.
We had to move the dinner party outside in order to accommodate everyone, moving the tables and laying out fresh linens over the top whilst Fred and George organised a number of purple lanterns to float around with a golden number seventeen on the fronts. Whilst Hermione decorated the trees with purple and gold streamers, I was making small firework figures with my wand, creating quidditch players and making them fly around on their broomsticks, tossing the quaffle to each other with two bludgers and the tiniest golden snitch anyone had ever seen, barely bigger than a firefly which flit around whilst the seeker – which I had modelled after Harry to make them as similar looking as possible – fly after it.
By that time, Hagrid, Remus and Tonks arrived so I waved to them then yelled to Harry so that he could come and see. Tonks was as vibrant as always, if anything more than usual, though in a stark contrast Uncle Rem looked subdued and bedraggled which made dad and I look at each other knowingly. "If you get the chance later, drag him off and interrogate him. I'll try and get Tonks." I said to him and the two of us agreed to the plan to find out what was happening. Honestly, I thought Remus was happy being married to Tonks, what in Circe's name could have gone wrong now? Never mind, for now I'll focus on Harry's birthday, and then I'll grill Tonks to find out what she knows.
"Out of the way! Out of the way!" Molly trilled triumphantly as she came out of the house with the giant snitch birthday cake we had made together. Harry's jaw dropped practically to the ground as Molly suspended it in the air then made it hover in pride of place at the centre of the table for everyone to see and admire. Harry complimented it, telling Molly that it looked amazing to which she smiled at him affectionately. "Oh, it's nothing dear." With the final gifts from our new guests given, we then only had to wait for Arthur to come home so that we could sit down to eat.
It was getting chillier outside so I enchanted some bright gold flames to float around as the firework quidditch players continued to play their game, but just as I was about to head inside, I heard a crackle of sound before a burst of reddish gold flames appeared not three feet away from me before they were swept aside by Fawkes's magnificent wings. "Fawkes!" Brightening when I saw him, I naturally extended my arm for him to land. "You're back, great timing. It's Harry's seventeenth today so we're celebrating. How is it looking? Are they still there?"
Not many people were aware, but I had sent Fawkes to check on the giants in order to see whether or not they had moved, but as Fawkes gave a soft call and shook his head slowly, he passed on the message that they were still in the mountain region where they lived. "Alright, that's good. Thank you for checking up on them. Here, how about you come inside with me?" Since Fawkes had recently gone through his rebirth cycle, he wasn't quite yet fully grown. At the moment, he was about the size of Hedwig, though with longer tail feathers which draped over my shoulder as he perched in there and when I went inside, Harry looked up with recognition.
"Fawkes! I didn't know you still had him."
"He's stuck around, guess he likes me." I shrugged as Harry came over to stroke his feathers and Gabrielle looked completely enthralled so I then knelt down so that she could reach as well, marvelling in broken English and erratic French at how beautiful Fawkes was. We began to set up the tables with dinner, Madame Delacour having graciously offered Molly her help all afternoon but as we continued to wait on Arthur, seven o' clock passed us by and dad frowned.
"He did know when we were going to start, didn't he?"
"Yes of course, he must be held up by something." Molly worried, glancing at the gate continuously until eventually admitted defeat. "I think we'd better stat without Arthur. He must have been held up at…oh!" Several people gasped as a silver blur came streaking towards us like a falling star in the loom of twilight before it took the form of a weasel, and as it opened it's mouth, Arthur's voice spoke.
"Minister for Magic coming with me." And that was all the warning we received.