Chapter 16 - Plots and Superiority
July 5th, 1992 (Sunday)
Location: Granger's House - Heathgate, Hampstead
Meissa peers at the tree marking the boundary of the Granger's property. By her calculations this is the North most portion of the plot. With a thoughtful hum she pulls out the notebook - a small palm sized little notebook - and scribbles down a few ideas with the pencil Hermione gave her.
Pencils - much more user friendly compared to the quills. There's not a chance she'll be giving up this little invention without a fight. The only complaint she has about the pencils is the fact that the lead residue leaves a mark along the side of her hand.
With a soft hum she takes another look at her notes. So far she has a general layout for what she's planning, she just needs to pinpoint the South most portion of the property and the center.
"Meissa," she hears Daphne call out to her before something is thrown at her. Taken by surprised the cloth hits her - covering her face and startling her for a quick second. "Hermione says to get ready."
She yanks the cloth off her head - it's a jacket she notes distantly - so she can glare at the blonde. "Was that necessary?" she retorts, attempting to smooth down her hair.
"Yes," Daphne smiles at the weak glare Meissa sent her. The blonde's rather amused by Meissa's reaction to the jacket suddenly covering her - Meissa's attempt to glare at her is rather weak compared to the usual glares she sends to those who irritate her.
The raven-haired girl brush her hair from her face, smoothing down the wayward strands, before shrugging on the trench coat. It's a knee length jacket with a layer of protection stitched into the inside of the jacket - curtsey of her godmother - and way too many pockets lining the inside. It's made out of a light material just enough to be comfortable in the summer but warm enough for London's winter. It'll do the trick for the most part and frankly, even if it doesn't, she can use a spell to warm herself if needed.
"I don't suppose you know where we're headed?" Meissa asks sarcastically, adjusting the lapels on her jacket as she spoke.
"None. She only said it'll be a surprise."
Meissa huffs softly at this bit of news, already partially irritated but willing to go along for the time being. "Are we meeting the others in the foyer?" she asks, slipping the notebook into the inside pocket of her jacket.
"Yup. Just waiting on you."
"Lovely," Meissa rolls her eyes, slipping a hand into Daphne's as they head over to the house.
"So what were you doing?" Daphne asks.
"Plotting."
"I gathered as much," the blonde remarks drily. "Mind including me?"
She makes a show of thinking about it until the blond bumps her shoulder into her. She grins mischievously at her friend in response.
"What do you think of the nexus?" Meissa deflects casually, getting a side eye from the blonde. The dark haired girl has no doubt she'll have to resume that line of conversation later on but since Daphne isn't calling her out on it she assumes the blonde is going to entertain her for the moment.
"Mm… it's old," Daphne remarks, briefly letting go of the other girl's hand to open the back door. Meissa nods in agreement. "Seems like there's two lines running through it."
"Feels like three."
Daphne pauses in mid motion, her brows furrowing in thought. Reaching out with her magic to try and get a sense of this. She can feel the two she mentioned previously. A large line that runs from the north to the south. Another seems to run to the west. It's slightly smaller than the first one but still easily to notice. It takes her focusing a bit more to get a sense of the third line hidden by first two lines. It's smaller - barely noticeable in the grand scheme of things. It feels new compared to the previous ones.
How was it that Meissa could sense something like this within a day?
Sometime, Meissa's sensitivity to magic is amazing. She's not entirely sure what to make of her friend's sensitivity though.
"Three's a magical number, isn't it?"
"Seven is probably stronger," Meissa remarks idly reaching out and shutting the door completely.
"True."
They were about to continue when they hear footsteps - fast moving - just before they see Hermione turning around the corner.
"There you are!" she exclaims, all but throwing herself at the pair.
Daphne manages to duck back in time which leaves Meissa with the task of catching the smaller girl before she could be knocked off her feet. With a grunt, the girls collide and Meissa teeters on her feet - not quite stable on her feet but not quite falling. Only Daphne's hands on her shoulders keep them from crumbling onto the floor.
"Songbird!" they hear Henry call out, "Did you find your friends?"
In that instance Hermione lets go of Meissa. "Yes dad! We'll be there in a second!" she calls back. "Are you ready?" she asks, looking over the Slytherins.
The raven haired girl is clad in one of her casual cargo pants and a black tank top with the jacket thrown over it. The loose - read that several times larger - top has a phrase on it in bold writing - 'sassy since birth' - in silver print. The best part about the top is that there's an imprint of a kiss - done in a vibrant red with just the right amount of glitter to make it noticeable - that is partially hidden by 'sassy'. Her godfather had basically given her the stink eye for wanting to get it but ultimately did not make a fuss about the purchase.
Daphne is wearing another sundress, a dark blue dress with a floral pattern, that stops just past her knees. When she had been making the selection that morning, Meissa had noticed that it's a sleeveless dress with a high back. For a bit of warmth, Daphne has a black half jacket that doesn't fall further than her ribs. She has her hair tied back in a loose yet somehow elegant bun. Wisps of her hair has already escaped the confines of the hairstyle.
If Meissa hadn't known better, it would be easy to assume that the bun had been done in matter of seconds. For herself, she had not bothered doing anything with her hair after the shower. Electing to allow it to hang free after confining it to a braid for a day. She has no doubt that at some point she will feel compelled to braid it back but for now there's no harm in letting it free.
"As ready as we'll get," Meissa remarks, stuffing her hands into her pockets.
The straps of her wand holster digs slightly into her skin and a brief scrape of her thumb against her fingers confirms she has all her rings on. She doesn't have to touch her ears to know that her earrings are in - she had forgotten to remove them before settling in for the night. Then again, no one was expecting to pass out in front of the telly. In one of her pockets is a vial, charmed to be unbreakable, of her migraine potion. Just in case.
"Great, let's go then!" Hermione declares cheerfully before dashing for the foyer.
"Has she always been this energetic?" Daphne wonders idly as they follow after the Gryffindor at a sedate pace.
"I can't quite recall," Meissa remarks, a smirk tugging on the corners of her lips. "It's cute."
"Mm, that's fair," the blonde agrees in a tone that suggests disbelief at her own words.
"By the way, do you have your wand?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
Meissa shrugs as they stepped into the foyer. "I just wanted to check." She looks at Hermione. "How about you?"
"No?" Hermione had only been paying partial attention to their conversation and just barely registered the question Meissa had directed to the blond.
Both Slytherins stared at the Gryffindor in disbelief.
"Why?" Daphne is the first to ask what was on their minds.
"Because it's against the law?"
"It is not against the law to carry a wand," Meissa points out.
"I only meant that it's against the law to use magic while underage and outside of Hogwarts."
"And how do you plan on defending yourself if necessary?"
"Why, pray tell, do you think you may need to defend yourself?" Jean injects gently.
"My uncle knows of a wizard who has a saying," Meissa starts evenly, her hands stuffed into her pockets in an effort to keep from crossing her arms. "Constant vigilance." Daphne nods her head in agreement.
"But we could get expelled!" Hermione protests.
"There are loop holes," Daphne informs the brunette. "In event of emergencies, we are allowed to defend ourselves. Obviously being discreet is important but in the grand scheme of things, staying alive is top priority." Meissa can agree with this but she's also aware that the law benefits only the purebloods.
"Considering that magical children are a rarity they will pardon us for using magic in emergencies," Meissa adds in a dry tone.
"A rarity?" Henry asks in disbelief. "Somehow I didn't get that impression from the train station."
The girls exchange a look with each other, debating on saying anything before Daphne sighed and gestures for Meissa to continue.
"Perhaps rarity is not the correct wording," Meissa remarks lightly as she gestures for the Grangers to head out the front door. The Slytherins joining the trio to allow for Jean to lock the door behind them. "How much are you aware of the history of the Magical world?"
"Only bits and pieces," Henry supplies while his wife unlocks the car for them. "Basically what Songbird has told us about."
Meissa nods thoughtfully, waiting until everyone is situated in the car before continuing. Daphne and her were able to buckle themselves in with minimal help from the Gryffindor. Considering that they've only been in the car once so far they're fast learners.
"It's to my understanding that the numbers for non-magicals are among several billions. The magical world is… a small portion of the entire world. In Britain, alone, after the recent wars the population is probably as low as it ever been."
"What she means," Daphne injects with a fond eyeroll, "our birthrates are extremely low."
"The pureblood insists on being only with purebloods," Meissa adds.
"The old bloods anyway. There are some families who doesn't care about blood status."
Daphne exchange looks with the raven haired girl, the girls silently debating on how much the elder Grangers know. Meissa doesn't recall ever discussing the tiers within the magical world. The muggleborns are considered the lowest among the witches and wizards, just barely a step up above the Squibs. How much did they want to inform the Grangers when it's clear that Hermione had limited how much she has told them about what had happened at the end of their First year.
"Wait," Henry twists around to look at the girls, "does that mean these… 'purebloods' - do they practice selective breeding?"
"Indeed," Meissa remarks in a bland tone.
The grimace on Henry's face was hilarious - if it wasn't for the fact she's deeply aware of how tangled her own bloodline is. How many families she is connected to through marriage and blood. Her own aunt and uncle were first cousins.
~MJB~
Hi everyone, I want to say thank you for the reviews, favs, and follows. I hope you continue to like the story and the (mis)adventures of the group.
If you have any thoughts/suggestions as to what the girls can do during the summer please leave a comment. Other than that, have a great day/night and I'll see you for the next chapter.