Turns out Megan Jones is a Character you can tag for FanFic stories so yeah, Megan! We finally have a Harry Potter character to tag for the story. I looked it up and Megan J. only has 51 stories to her name. Well, 52 now! Bottom line, Megan will be making a bigger appearance in future chapters.
Onto Hogsmeade! Enjoy!
Chapter VII: Hogsmeade's Newest Secret Vendor
The end of the first term was a slow burn with the days growing colder and forcing everyone to remain inside for warmth. That November had been the coldest winter in a while, and no number of enchanted clothing items for warmth seemed to be able to help. Many blamed it on the Dementors just outside the gate, their ghastly presence and freezing nature working to support the theory. Nobody could think of a reason to disagree with that.
The only exciting School news before term finals was that Ravenclaw's Quidditch team had flattened Hufflepuff in their match. Ravenclaw's Third Year Seeker Cho Chang had been toying with Hufflepuff's Seeker, Cedric Diggory, for a while before snatching the Golden Snitch, allowing Ravenclaw to rack up a shockingly high tally against the normally proficient Hufflepuff. With that victory, Ravenclaw had skyrocketed to the top of the Hogwarts league with a solid chance of winning the Quidditch Cup that year. The news had left many in Gryffindor and Slytherin on edge.
On the whole, as with every end of the term, the student body seemed to hit a wall of fatigue as the countdown to the Christmas Holiday began. This wall did not exist for the members of the Potions Appreciation Club, who had grown quite fastidious about production of the Concentration Potion.
"We really need to think of a better name for it." Vaughn commented to Teddy and Giuliana as they schemed in the library.
"Let's make sure it sells first." Giuliana cautioned.
"I don't know. I reckon that all the best people in marketing will be owling us to ask us to name things for them. 'Concentration Potion?' Brilliant!" Teddy joked, eliciting a small laugh from Vaughn and even a smile from Giuliana. The P.A.C. had been spending quite a lot of time together recently and the initial tension seemed to have resided some. Giuliana also seemed far more comfortable around Teddy, perhaps because she saw him commit fully to the idea. One day he came in with a full page of numbers and statistics about costs and profits, much to Giuliana's interest and delight. She still didn't trust him enough to divulge the location of their potion workshop, but she at least liked him.
Their group's growing friendship hadn't escaped their peers' attention though. Vaughn and Giuliana had been questioned by fellow Slytherin about it a few times, with Malfoy as the Grand Inquisitor. He'd often question them in the Common Room why the two of them wanted to lower themselves to the level of "that mouthy Hufflepuff."
"Everyone knows the Rzhevsky and Cumano stock isn't high." Malfoy sneered. "But to lower it down to befriend some Mudblood? You insult all of us Purebloods."
"Careful, Malfoy. We wouldn't want to break that other arm of yours." Giuliana warned. "You could go running to Daddy about it, sure. But Daddy will find it a lot harder to deal with ancient Bloodlines such as ours. He should probably just stick to messing with Groundskeepers. They're more his speed and challenge, hmm?"
Hisses erupted across the Slytherin Common Room, most of them in amusement at someone punching back at Malfoy. The blonde-haired brat's ears went red from the insult and he retreated back into the circle of sycophants and dimwits he called friends. Almost no one besides those "friends" was on Malfoy's side about the Buckbeak incident, House solidarity or not. Vaughn and Giuliana had been there that day and both agreed that Malfoy had disobeyed very clear instructions from Professor Hagrid about treatment of the Hippogriff. Now Malfoy had his father making a big stink about it at the Ministry. It apparently worked as there was to be a hearing about Buckbeak in April before the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures.
"Dumbledore could probably stop Lucius Malfoy dead in his tracks if he wanted." Vaughn mused to Giuliana one night as they brewed their potions. "Could just owl some old friends in the Ministry and that would be that. My parents say Dumbledore has plenty of contacts, so why doesn't he use them?"
Giuliana snorted in response while carefully distilling the contents of her cauldron. "Because Dumbledore is ultimately useless unless you have a lion sewn into your robes. Who knows though."
But beyond the Slytherins, Teddy's own friends began to question P.A.C.s growing friendship. Megan Jones, as Teddy's best friend, was chief among them, and eyed the three of them suspiciously whenever they were together and talking in hushed voices. She had attempted several times to invade those conversations, only to be beat back with silence from the Slytherins and smiles with excuses from Teddy.
"Sorry I have to ask, but why can't I tell Megan about the stuff we're doing?" Teddy, not the first time, had asked.
"We don't know Megan that well." Vaughn had replied.
"Well you both didn't know me that well either when you approached me, and I'm trustworthy. Well, trustworthy enough." Teddy said with a wink. "But honestly, I don't know what to keep telling her. I can't say we're friends and then not invite her to hang out with us."
"You could tell her we don't like her?" Giuliana proposed.
"Um.. yeah… so do we have any other better ideas than that? Oh, wait, are you serious?"
They never did come up with a better idea, though Giuliana and Vaughn continually promised to think about including Megan. Vaughn was inclined to say yes to it but knew Giuliana needed some time with it.
Finally, it was time to go to Hogsmeade. The Saturday was ok; the sky had cleared up, though there was still some light snowfall and the ground had frosted over. The student mood on the train ride to Hogsmeade was excited as most of those going had already finished term finals and papers. The Hogsmeade trip was a final friend outing for many before returning home for the Christmas Holiday. Vaughn understood that a few students remained behind at Hogwarts during the Christmas Holiday, but he didn't know any Slytherins who did.
"Seems more like a Muggle thing to do so they don't have to go back to their magicless lives." Vaughn said as Giuliana and him discussed it. They had insulated themselves in a private cabin near the front of the train, enjoying some warm coco from the trolley. Teddy was with friends near the back of the train and would meet them in Hogsmeade.
"You know Pippa, the Fifth Year in our House?" Giuliana asked, to which Vaughn nodded. "She's apparently staying at Hogwarts for the Holidays."
"Why?"
"Don't know. Heard she's had some trouble at home though and doesn't want to go back."
"That's tragic." Vaughn said, trying to imagine life without his family.
The journey from Hogwarts to Hogsmeade was a short one. After a somewhere between five to ten minute ride, the horn on the train blew several times to signal their arrival. Finishing their coco quickly and accidently burning their tongues, both Vaughn and Giuliana exited their cabin and joined the throng of students eager to explore the village.
Hogsmeade was an old but brightly colored village, with candles hanging in large pine trees to commemorate the holiday. As the only purely magical inhabited village in Great Britain, Hogsmeade held a high level of importance to the British Wizarding Community. Founded by Hengist of Woodcroft over a thousand years ago, the simple looking village of cottages and shops had a lot of history, so much so that the air buzzed with generations of built up magic. Unfortunately, most of that history was lost through shoddy record keeping and legends had risen in the place of facts.
Vaughn and Giuliana debarked the train together, leaving the station and headed up High Street to their meeting point with Teddy. J. Pipin's Potion was a turquoise colored shop that sold a variety of potions for all ailments. Their biggest seller was the Blemish Blitzer for bad acne. Teddy was outside of it, snowflakes sticking to his black robes and yellow and black Hufflepuff scarf.
"You two ready?" Teddy asked, grinning from ear to ear. Both Slytherin's nodded, equally as excited. "Then let's get start."
Expecting to be led to some secret location or mysterious back alley, both Slytherin's were disappointed to find Vaughn leading them into Tomes and Scrolls, a bookshop that was established in 1768 and had a playful rivalry with Flourish and Blotts in Diagon Alley. Teddy led them into the store, gave the shop owner a wave, and brought them to the second floor.
"What are we doing here?" Vaughn asked. Besides the shop owner in the back and an older Hufflepuff downstairs, they were the only ones there.
"Just give it a sec and look at some books."
The Slytherins followed Teddy's lead again, looking over the books around them. Vaughn was glancing through the odd book How to Love Acromantula So They Can Love You! when the Hufflepuff came upstairs and stood next to Vaughn. He looked nervous and talked quickly with Teddy, who was relaxed in comparison. Teddy called Vaughn over, wrapping an arm around him when he was close enough.
"Got the potion?" he asked.
Now Vaughn was as nervous as the older Hufflepuff. Looking down to make sure the shopkeeper wasn't coming up the stairs, Vaughn reached into his robes, pulling out the shimmering turquoise phial, and handed over the potion to the older Hufflepuff. Looking it over, he then handed Vaughn a heavy pouch of Galleons. The older Hufflepuff quickly left, feet slamming against the old wooden staircase as he left.
Giuliana rushed over to join them. "What just happened?"
"Congrats, everyone! We just made our first sale!" Teddy said, pulling away from Vaughn. "Now, onto our next one."
Without another word, he headed down the wooden stairs, followed by Vaughn and Giuliana. The exited the store and went down High Street back towards the train station. Nearing the edge of the village, Teddy took them on a left turn towards a cul-de-sac area of shops. They passed the first few before Teddy lead them down an alley between Ceridwen's Cauldrons and an empty storefront.
Soon they were traversing through some trees and over a hill before coming out in front of a mostly frozen pond. A few larger boulders lay around it and Teddy sat down on the one with the least amount of snow covering it.
"And now we wait for our next customers." Teddy instructed.
They waited in silence. Vaughn took the opportunity to count the Galleons they had received, marveling at the sum. Giuliana did as well for a bit before breaking off to skip rocks against the pond. Each hit the thin ice loudly, cracking the ice bit by bit until the pond was liberated from its icy confines.
Five minutes after they arrived, two older girls arrived.
"Ladies!" Teddy called out, jumping off from the rock to greet them. They chatted for a bit until the two girls looked at Vaughn and Giuliana, their eyes judging.
"These are your partners?" The Hufflepuff asked.
"They are the masterminds behind it, yes." Teddy replied.
The Ravenclaw snorted. "Should have known snakes were involved in all this." she muttered, pulling out her share of the payment. The Hufflepuff did the same. Teddy, ignoring the Ravenclaw's comment, beckoned for Giuliana and Vaughn to join him. They each pulled out one phial of the potion and handed it over as the money was put into Teddy's hands.
"You'll be so satisfied that after the Holiday you'll be begging for more to keep up with your N.E.W.T. workload." Teddy assured them as they left. Once they were out of earshot, Teddy turned to them, rolling their eyes. "Well they were pleasant." He joked.
"As long as they're paying, I don't care what they think of us." Vaughn lied.
The waited for another fifteen minutes and another student from Hufflepuff arrived. Vaughn knew him to be a Sixth Year, unlike their previous three customers. Like the others, the older student handed over his Galleons and received the potion in return. After he was out of sight, Teddy informed them they were moving again.
He led them back into Hogsmeade and through groups of students running between shops and enjoying the merriment of Hogsmeade. Expecting them to go somewhere quieter, Vaughn was shocked when Teddy led them into the busiest shop in Hogsmeade: Zonko's Joke Shop.
Inside, students pushed against one another to try out the latest prank toys and trick potions on sale. Rockets shot overhead as one student failed to properly wind up a toy, causing a fit of laughter to erupt around him. On a table in the back, a group of Chocolate Frogs were singing and doing a ragtime dance routine for the delight of students. Elsewhere in the colorfully orange and pink store, a girl screamed as her hair turned frizzy and a pungent shade of brown and green. Through it all, the two shop owners danced around the crowds, laughing and encouraging the teenage students in their antics.
"You can't be serious." Giuliana stated, looking around the joke store.
"Totally serious." Teddy said, before having to duck to avoid being hit by an out of control enchanted paper broomstick. A Leprechaun was riding it, and as it flew it left a trail of the colors of Ireland's National Quidditch Team. Once it was safe to stand up again, the group moved deeper into the joke shop, finding themselves a nook in the back of the shop to hang out until a Hufflepuff, who Vaughn knew was their Houses Beater, Anthony Rickett, came up to them. As with the other sales, he handed over a small bag of Galleons and received the potion in return. It was so blatantly out in the open, Vaughn expected someone to say something.
But no one did. Everyone's eyes were elsewhere, distracted by the many outlandish and magical items in the store that they couldn't be bothered to look at the one ordinary thing happening in the nook of the store.
Once Rickett left, Teddy put the Galleons in his robes and turned to them. "And that's that." He said.
"What?" both Slytherins said in unison.
Teddy, in typical form, just flashed a smile. "Who wants tea?"
The group then migrated over to Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop at the edge of Hogsmeade. Vaughn had never been and was shocked to find how cramped things were inside. It was all very nicely decorated with immaculate China sets, lacy napkins, and small intimate tables. The proprietor and eponymous owner, Madam Puddifoot, was making the rounds, taking orders and serving tea and treats to the patrons, most of whom seemed to be couples from Hogwarts.
"The coloring is a bit loud, but they have the best tea I've tasted so far in the magical world." Teddy complimented.
With the tea shop's bright pink exterior, "loud" was a bit of an understatement. Inside, things were tightly packed but the atmosphere cozy. The inside apparently changed for the season or holiday and was currently decorated for Christmas. The room was covered with garland and bells, decorated with frilly red bows. A large yuletide log burned in the fireplace that was enchanted to emanate a faint smell of pine tree and peppermint. Above the patrons, golden cherubs hovered and played Christmas music on little red colored instruments. One mischievous cherub, however, was holding a mistletoe and teasing couples in the shop with it.
The tea they had ordered arrived quickly. After a few moments to allow it to cool some, Teddy lifted it to his lips and sipped slowly, enjoying everyone. "Excellent." He said. "Of course, only the best stuff the Brits stole from other countries would make it into the Wizarding World."
Neither Slytherin could tell if he was joking or what that meant and instead changed the conversation. "So, that's it? We're done for today?" Giuliana asked.
"For today." Teddy replied before continuing once he saw the look of disappointment and annoyance on their faces. "Look, I told you both not to expect many customers our first time sellin', I think five students is a good start."
"Teddy," Giuliana began, annoyance still in her voice, "You ran the numbers with us. What we made today barely gets us over the amount we spent on supplies. And with what's left, we only get fifteen Galleons each!"
Teddy shook his head in response, "Look, you both come from rich families. Worse yet, you come from rich Wizard families! You don't know how business is run!"
"You buy supplies, you make something, and then sell it, not that complicated." Vaughn commented.
"But it is! There's more to it than that. Otherwise every bloke would be rich and think Leprechaun Gold was legit! Oh, blimey, back in First year for Christmas, Megan bought me some Leprechaun Gold as a Christmas Gift and I thought it was real so-"
"Teddy! Your plan?" Giuliana asked.
"Oh, right. Right then, look. It's a good product but no one knows that yet. Now, I found us five students who we can trust not to blab to others about the potion, except to those who want to but it themselves!"
"So, you're building a network of students we can sell to." Vaughn finished.
"Preciously!"
Well, I guess that works." Vaughn said, "But why are we selling in stores?"
"Because magical stores are the perfect place to sell."
"Out in the open where everyone can see?" Giuliana questioned. "Seems like an easy way to get caught!"
"That's fair, but here's the thing. No one is actually watching us!" Teddy exclaimed.
Both of them were confused now, so Teddy had to explain. "Ok, in the non-magical world, they might have guards at the store, checking everyone as they leave or just making rounds. Some even have these little chips in a plastic bar – you know what, never mind you two wouldn't understand that. Anyways, the point is in the non-magical world everyone is vigilant for theft and because of that, they're also on the lookout for any underhanded business happening in their store. But with spells protecting a store from theft – a shopkeeper's greatest worry – why would they need to be vigilant for all things on the shady side?"
"So, because we have spells, unlike muggle stores-"
"Non-magical stores."
Vaughn blinked at that. "Sorry?"
"Sorry, non-magical stores don't have spells, keep going."
Giuliana was just as confused as Vaughn as he continued. "Er, right. Because Hogsmeade uses spells, the owners don't worry about any bad stuff happening in their stores and then don't keep an eye out for that kind of activity?"
"Correct!"
"That's, that's kind of wild." Vaughn said.
"What can I tell you. People in the Wizarding World have a laxer outlook about things." Teddy said, before leaning in to talk softer. "Also, have either of you improved the Calming Draught?"
Both Slytherins shook their heads. "Not yet. We focused more on the Concentration Potion this past month." Giuliana replied.
"I'm only asking since I think we could find more profit from the Calming Draught than the Concentration Potion." Teddy said.
"Really? Why? Everyone wants to do well in school."
"Sure, but people also want to relax."
Vaughn nodded along, understanding what Teddy was getting at. Giuliana was still confused. "Why? People at Hogwarts aren't prone to hysterics."
"Not to actually calm down people, but to just relax. Take a load off." Vaughn said.
"I don't understand." Giuliana continued.
"Look, it'll make more sense if you make the potion properly and it turns out the way I think it will. Then we can all use it together and you'll see."
"We have to actually be able to make it first."
"And that's where I had another idea! Your families are ancient Witches and Wizards, and you have massive mansions, right? Don't you have libraries you can just search for this info in and find an easier way to make the potion?"
Both Slytherins laughed. "We already thought of that." Giuliana explained. "I'm off to visit family in Italy for Christmas and I'll look around to see what I can find."
The conversation then went off into discussing their holiday plans. Vaughn found it enjoyable sitting amongst friends, his social group expanding thanks to Teddy. He was fitting in well and most of the tension was gone between Giuliana and him. Not that Teddy had ever instigated it. After finishing her tea, Giuliana paid for it and left to do some last-minute Christmas shopping for some cousins. Now just the two boys, Teddy confessed something.
"You know that idea bout searching the family libraries? That actually wasn't my idea."
"What?" Vaughn asked, shocked.
"It was actually Megan's."
"Y-You told her?"
"I did, I'm sorry," Teddy assured, "But it was the only way I could spend the day with you two."
"But you promised!" Vaughn said, feeling childish for saying that but also equally betrayed.
"I know I did. I'm so sorry, I really am. But we can trust Megan. She won't say anything."
Vaughn grew quiet as a realization hit him. "Does she want to join P.A.C.?" he asked.
"No, not really. It was just a suggestion she threw out. Thought it was a good idea and I'd sound smart for suggesting it."
Vaughn chuckled at that. "I already think you're smart. You told us to trust you with the selling and you did a great job today."
"Ha! Thank you, but I'm not the smart one who brewed the potions."
Vaughn felt flattered and unsure of what to say to that. Luckily, Teddy continued speaking.
"I hope I didn't mess things up for you. How many potions do you guys still have left over?"
"Oh, plenty." Vaughn assured him. "But we keep them with the potion sets we use."
"Really?"
"They're in a safe place that isn't our bedrooms. We wouldn't want a Prefect finding them."
"True."
"And thanks for telling me about Megan. It's not a good idea to keep secret with what we're doing."
"True. Though please don't tell Giuliana yet. Feels like she's starting to like me and I don't want to muck that up."
Vaughn laughed before replying, "Sure." They continued to talk for a while as they finished their tea. Their conversations weren't even about the Club, drifting from things happening around Hogwarts, their thoughts on classes, and even their home lives. Vaughn didn't follow a lot of what Teddy was saying about his life in the Muggle World, but it was fascinating to hear about how they lived.
"Can I write to you over the break?" Vaughn asked, before feeling embarrassed. "You know, about my research and what not?"
"You can, though I'd be happy to hear about the "what not" too." Teddy joked.
There were some smiles between the two boys as Vaughn felt a blush creeping up his neck. Teddy actually looked a bit flushed too when Vaughn looked at him. But perhaps the most embarrassing and mortifying thing was the sudden appearance of the mistletoe wielding cherub above them.
At the table next to them was a Sixth Year Slytherin, Peregrine Derrick, and his Ravenclaw girlfriend. Both of them noticed the cherub and giggled. "Hey, Vaughn," Peregrine teased while pointing to the cherub. "They only do that when people are in love!"
Both of the younger boys laughed and tried to swat away the cherub. Teddy made jokes in reaction to it and smoothed things over, but no matter what they did, the cherub wouldn't leave. Eventually, both boys threw down some Galleons for the tea and bolted from the shop, laughing between themselves once they were outside.
'They only do that when people are in love?' Vaughn thought, butterflies erupting in his stomach. A smile didn't leave his face for the rest of the day.
For Hogsmeade, I used a map designed by Prior Incantato Resurgence, posted on QuillNParchment's Profile. It is the most detailed one that I found and says that it is a "combination of book, movie, Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Pottermore, and the LEGO games." While I am keeping things as close as possible to canon (the books), I like this version as it actually looks like a Village and has room for the residential area of Hogsmeade. If anyone has an "official" version of Hogsmeade, please let me know and I can adjust the story to fit that.
We really don't know what Witches and Wizards from rich families do. Looking directly at you Lucius Malfoy. What exactly is his job? It mainly just seems to be stalking the halls of the Ministry and serving the whims of his two masters: Voldemort and his son.
He isn't even on the Wizengamot, which seems like the occupation a rich Witches and Wizards would aspire to. The Wizengamot seems to carry a high amount of prestige and it would seem easy for political connections to get someone appointed to it. We know nothing about how someone gets on it other than the Minister of Magic plays a role, and with someone like Cornelius Fudge running the show, it seems obvious that political lackeys and sycophants would find themselves appointed. No law experience even seems required for it anyways.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. There will be a longer rant on the Wizengamot and the Wizarding World's law enforcement in future chapters when they become integral to the story.