Chapter Nineteen: A Fabletown Christmas
Fabletown, New York, December 2011
New York was probably the poster child for major metropolitan life no matter where you lived. Like most major cities it went all out when the holidays came. Ads for deals were everywhere, decorations covered every building in sight, hype about the Macy's Parade and more were abuzz, and children played in the snow in Central Park. And Fabletown was no exception.
It was Christmas Eve and there was a party in the Woodland ballroom, the same room where the Remembrance Day ball was held. Only this party wasn't a ball, everyone was in casual clothes and there was no fancy feast provided. Instead it was more like an office Christmas party. People were mingling, drinking, passing out gifts, just overall enjoying themselves.
Hermione and her family found it surprisingly normal, not at all unlike some of the Christmas parties they've had to attend in the past. Sure, the people were magical, but still very much normal. The Grangers had been excited and surprised each time they encountered a character from a story they knew. Snow White, the Big Bad Wolf, Cinderella, Pinocchio, King Cole, it was something they never would have thought possible.
Hermione's parents had asked the obvious question of if it was really okay for them to be here on the first day. After all, Britain's wizarding community had a pretty strong 'No Muggles Allowed' rule with currently no exceptions provided. Snow had assured them that Fabletown had no such rule. Mundies as they called them came and went through the Fable and wizard districts all the time, though they were never aware of it. The magical parts were hidden, accessible only by those in the know.
During their tour of Fabletown and New York, they had stopped at a site that Harry told them was historic, and hopefully would answer some questions for them. Said site was the Old City Hall subway station, where they found a plaque in the wall that most people never saw.
"On this site on December 7, 1926, Gellert Grindelwald was defeated in his attempt to expose the magical world to the mundane. Here we forever honor the first union of Wizard, Fable, Magical Creature, and Mundy in an effort to save New York and show us how to live together rather than apart. May the legacy of Newt Scamander, Tina Goldstein, Morgan le Faye, and Jacob Kowalsky be remembered forever."
Morgan gave the Fablewulf students the full story. Before 1926, wizards and Fables in New York were neighbors but not connected. Sort of a 'you mind your business and I'll mind mine' kind of coexistence. Then Grindelwald came to town, probably to test his plans on tearing down the statute of secrecy before doing it in Europe. But four people, each from different cultures, banded together to take him down and make sure no one got hurt. After that, MACUSA and Fabletown became steady partners rather than two magical communities in the same city.
But the biggest change came thanks to the mundy man Jacob Kowalski, who happened to be British and visiting America at the time just like Newt Scamander. He had learned about the magical and while surprised, his contributions to the defeat of Grindelwald had earned him the right to retain his memories if he wished, and he did. Since then, MACUSA had established the Kowalsky Act of 1926, a law that permitted mundies to be aware of the magical if they could be trusted.
Hermione wondered why Britain didn't have a similar law, since muggles were only allowed to know if they were parents of a muggleborn child.
Here at the party though, that wasn't important. The only thing on their minds was having fun.
"Now this is magic I want to learn in school." Fred said happily while he and George worked on a snowman… indoors. There was a corner of the ballroom spelled to allow snow to remain indoors for the kids to play with.
"You and me both brother." George agreed, working with his hands. While they wished they could make the snowman with their wands, their mother wouldn't allow them. It was okay, they admitted it was more fun this way.
In another part of the snow corner Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Tracey were having a snowball fight. At Tracey's insistence it was boys versus girls, and Harry could safely admit that the girls were winning.
"Ha!" Ron exclaimed as he caught a snowball his sister had tried to hit him with. "You gotta try harder than tha-" He was cut off by Tracey beaning him with one of her own.
"Less talking more throwing." Tracey commented, making Ginny giggle.
Harry shook some snow out of his hair, then quickly scooped up a wad of snow and packed it. Acting quickly he threw it and managed to hit Ginny in the shoulder. "Finally got one! You're good at this."
She grinned playfully and threw a snowball at him. He dodged and the snowball went to the edge of the snow corner, halting in midair as if hitting an invisible wall then collapsed to the ground. Outside its limits Hermione watched, choosing not to participate.
"How juvenile."
"What's wrong? Don't like playing?"
Hermione looked to her side, seeing a Fable man she hadn't seen before in her time here. He was an old man, which alone was surprising considering how well-aged all Fables appeared to her. He had stringy white hair with a black fedora on his head, blue eyes, a wrinkled face, and he was thin but looked well cared for. His attire was a classic ugly Christmas sweater with black slacks, and he used a cane to support himself.
"Who are you?" Hermione asked.
The old man smiled. "I'm Ebenezer Scrooge. I'm told you're one of Harry's friends."
Hermione gasped. "You're… you're the Ebenezer Scrooge?"
"Well I'm sure not Scrooge McDuck." He joked, chuckling. "Go on, enjoy yourself. I didn't throw this party just to stand around and talk."
"This is your party? You're throwing a Christmas party?"
Ebenezer nodded. "Who else here would? But like I said, go ahead, have fun. You're still a child, why not have fun?"
"It's just… I… I never got to do this back home when I was younger. No one ever let me join in. Besides, it's not like you can learn anything doing this."
"Not true. You learn the most important thing there is in life." Ebenezer replied.
"Oh?"
"Yeah, enjoy life while you have it. Because next year you might end up the richest person in the cemetery. Besides, do you really think these kids will turn you away if you ask to join in?"
The bushy-haired girl hesitated. While she knew they wouldn't reject her, a lifetime of her never feeling wanted by other kids her age along with her finding comfort in books and homework wasn't something she could just be talked out of.
"It's okay, I'm much more interested in meeting other Fables like yourself Mr. Scrooge. What do you do here in Fabletown? How are things different for you now compared to back when your story was written? Did you come first, or did your-?"
"Whoa little girl, I'm going to stop you right there." The old man cautioned. "That particular question is best left unasked."
"What?" Hermione asked, aghast. "But… but it's a question. It has to be asked. There's no such thing as a question that shouldn't be asked."
Ebenezer shook his head. "Trust me, some questions are best left unanswered. But if you want to learn something, let me find Tiny Tim and we can answer some appropriate questions."
Hermione smiled despite her confusion and followed the old man.
Percy glanced around the room, looking like he was waiting for permission to leave. When Molly came home and told her family about the offer, her husband had been all for it, even with Morgan's condition. The twins had been eager as well. Bill and Charlie had declined for work, but appreciated the offer. Percy on the other hand had been the only one to express disinterest in going, but Molly wasn't going to let him stay alone for the holiday if she could help it. And thanks to his own difficulty in refusing authority, he had inevitably accepted to go.
And despite being in Fabletown for a few days now, Percy still was not enjoying himself at all. He just couldn't see why he should be so accepting of these people. They weren't wizards, they weren't British, they were magical but they didn't use it on a daily basis. Not to say that Percy was racist but… okay, he might have to admit to himself that he was a tiny bit racist. But it wasn't like he was sympathetic to the Death Eaters. He didn't want other people to die, he just didn't care what happened to them until it was his job to care.
And no matter how he looked at it, it wasn't his job to care about the Fables.
Beside that, he had found several reasons to dislike the Fables. For one, they had ruined his family tradition of being purely Gryffindor. These non-wizard Americans had come to his home, his country, and started forcing their ways into his school and told everyone to like it or get a failing grade that would impact their average for the entire year. And in doing so they had taken Ron away from the righteous Gryffindor house and stuck him in that new house with no history, no nobility, no soul of its own.
Percy almost believed that it would have been better for Ron to end up in Slytherin than Fablewulf. At least that house had a legacy and value to his culture.
Another reason was their representatives. They had chosen a talking pig and an infamous dark lord to teach a class that he didn't want to take but was ordered to. A pig, an animal that literally had no value to anyone unless dead, and Morgan le Faye, the closest thing that the wizarding world had in terms of an antichrist. Merlin was the greatest wizard of all, the reason that Wizarding Britain could hold it's head so high above all other countries, so his mortal enemy had to be the worst person to ever live. Anyone that was under her protection, and anyone who wanted her as their champion, was someone that Percy didn't want in his life or his country.
Now Percy might have been willing to forgive all that if it hadn't been for what the class had been teaching. Fairy tales being real? Other worlds? Magical and muggle coexisting? It was absolutely ludicrous. Fairy tales were just that, tales. These people must have been insane and convinced themselves that they were the characters from books. Other worlds were impossible, simple as that. And muggles felt nothing for wizards other than hatred and fear, the witch burnings were all the proof needed for that. Sure, being in Fabletown had proven that apparently muggles were more advanced than he had thought, but that just made them more dangerous. The separation between them should be widened and reinforced, not bridged.
Looking around, seeing everyone pretend nothing was wrong, Percy was left with one conclusion. Fabletown was a threat to his way of life, as well as all wizards around the world. And if MACUSA wasn't going to do anything about it, he was. But first, he'd have to start by protecting his family from them.
It was late at night and since it was the City That Never Sleeps, one could not say that everyone was nestled in bed with thoughts of sugarplums dancing in their heads. There were bound to be those still awake for one reason or another.
Coraline was one of them, seated in her apartment's living room watching for someone. By her side was some soda to help keep her awake and a notepad with a pen.
"Are you serious about this?" Tracey asked, awake as well. Once the Weasley's and Grangers had come to Fabletown, guest plans had changed. Those families were staying at Fabletown's hotel, and thus Tracey and Daphne were bunking with the Fable girl at her place.
Coraline nodded. "Absolutely. Santa Claus, or Father Christmas as we best know him, is real and he will come here. He and I have a deal."
Daphne yawned, looking like she wanted to go to sleep. "You know, I can believe a lot of things about Fables. I can accept that Morgan le Faye is still alive. I can accept that Snow White is real. I can accept that there are other worlds out there. But somehow I still have a hard time believing that Father Christmas is real too. What next? Is the Easter Bunny real?"
"As far as I know, yes." Coraline replied.
A window slightly opened and a bit of cold wind blew into the apartment. The girls shivered but Coraline perked up. "He's here."
Tracey and Daphne looked at each other, both wondering if this was really happening.
A small flurry of snow came into the apartment and formed a tiny twister. It expanded and then all of a sudden Santa Claus was there. He looked very much like the depiction seen on Coca Cola products. Red clothes, black belt and boots, white beard, and a large sack held over his shoulder.
"Right where I expected you to be Coraline." He greeted, putting his sack down before looking at the other girls. "Ah, Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis. I bet this is quite the surprise for you."
"Fa… Father Christmas?" Tracey asked in disbelief.
He chuckled. "St. Nick, Kris Kringle, Père Noël, I go by many names. But I can't be here for conversion. I need to speak with Coraline first."
The aforementioned girl grabbed her notepad and pen. "Ready?"
He nodded. "Yep, ask away."
"Okay, this is a bit different, but… this year I received a warning that could only come from one person. I have so many questions I want to ask, but I know the rules. So the one I will ask is… what is the Beldam planning now? Because I think she's coming back."
Santa took a moment to clear his throat. "I wish I could say otherwise, but you're right. She is coming back for you, but not just you. Her plan is the same as it's always been, but now she's going after new prey. Prey that she knows you will notice. She wants you the most Coraline, you're the one that got away. She will come for you like Voldemort will go for Harry."
Tracey and Daphne fidgeted at hearing that name. Then they looked to the Fable girl, wondering who could have that kind of vendetta against her.
"I can't tell you when she'll strike because that is not yet planned, but she will do things to keep your attention. She will put lives in danger, and I suspect then she will deliberately provide you that way back you've wanted for so long. But it will be a trap, obviously. So whatever you do, when you find that door, don't open it."
Coraline frowned. "Seriously? I mean, I know it's a trap, but you know what I need to do."
Santa nodded. "I can't stop you, I can only warn you. My time is almost up. Merry Christmas Coraline, I'll see you next year."
Coraline nodded. "Hopefully you won't need to. Merry Christmas Santa."
The jolly man turned to the two witch girls and opened his sack. "You girls want your presents? Or answers?"
"Uh… presents? I'm sure I can get answers from other people." Daphne replied with Tracey nodding.
Santa reached into his sack and pulled out two wrapped boxes, handing each to one of them. "Don't open till tomorrow. And Merry Christmas to both of you."
"Happy Christmas to you too Father Christmas."
Santa disappeared just as he came, in a flurry of snow and wind with the window closing.
Tracey and Daphne looked to Coraline, who was busy writing something down. "Did that really just happen?"
Daphne went up to Coraline. "Why didn't you get anything?"
"It's something Santa offers. If you spot him, you can ask him any question and he'll magically give you the answer. But it's only one question, and asking it means you give up your present for the year." She answered, then sighed. "This was my fifth year doing this, and I only now feel like I'm getting close to my goal."
"What goal?" Both girls asked.
Coraline had a firm look in her eyes. "Finding my parents and bringing them home."
Christmas morning came, with people all over the world waking up to begin their holiday traditions.
Harry woke up, got dressed, and opened his bedroom window briefly to allow Hedwig to enter. Last night the snowy owl had flown around the city, like each night she had been in New York, to hunt and do whatever else she wanted to do.
"Have a good night girl?" He asked, closing the window behind her.
"Yeah, except most of those crows are so rude. Why do American wizards use them when we owls are so much better?"
Harry smirked and stroked some of her feathers while offering her some bacon. "True, but to be fair crows blend in together here. No mundy notices another crow, but they would notice an owl. Especially one like you."
"Flattering, but I'm seeing someone back at Hogwarts."
Harry laughed and let her get to sleep on her perch while he went to the kitchen. Bigby was there already, offering him some cereal and toast.
"Merry Christmas cub."
"Merry Christmas Grandpa."
"Snow told me that the rec room has been turned into a winter wonderland for today, so you and your friends can go have some fun there all you want. She says it has more snow than Narnia." Bigby told him.
"How would she know? She's never been there."
Bigby chuckled. "Yeah, but we don't correct Miss White, do we?" Harry chuckled too. "Around noon, Miss White offered to have you and your friends go to the Farm. It'll be late by the time you get back, so hopefully she has dinner planned."
Harry thought it over. "I dunno… I feel like I should go, but you know my thoughts on the Farm. Anywhere you're not welcome Grandpa, I don't want to go."
Bigby smiled. "Thanks cub, but it's okay. Your friends will probably feel better with you there, and you can make sure Colin goes back. He's not staying here until it's time to go back to Scotland."
"Weren't his brothers killed a few months ago? He might not be comfortable going back." Harry pointed out.
Bigby sighed. "Fine, but he had better give you extra credit for this." Harry chuckled again. "Oh, I'm curious. What did Old Man Dumbledore give you?"
"I can open my presents?" Harry asked. Usually it was their tradition to do it at the end of the day rather than the beginning. Bigby said it helped build anticipation and allowed others to be there for the celebration as well.
"Just this one. The rest can wait."
Nodding, Harry went and grabbed the gift that Dumbledore had given him before leaving Hogwarts. He opened it and found a folded bit of black fabric. Confused, he pulled it out, and it unfolded into a long cloak with a tag falling out, which he knelt down to retrieve.
"It says 'This belonged to your father. To help you remember that you are a Potter as well as a Wolf'."
"Your father?" Bigby repeated. "Suspicious."
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, putting the cloak around him to see if it did anything.
Bigby's eyes widened. "Whoa, that… that's unexpected."
Confused, Harry looked around, gasping when he realized he could no longer see any of his body below his neck. He dropped the cloak and his body came back into view. "Whoa, did that just make me invisible?"
"Lily never told me James had something like that, though it does make me wonder." Bigby thought out loud.
"Wonder what?" Harry asked, picking up the cloak.
"When your parents died, my only concern at the time was taking care of you. I lost track of your parent's things. In hindsight that was not smart, but apparently Dumbledore took that over. So if he's holding onto it, like your vault key Wendy told me about, how much does he have? And why has he only given this to you now?"