Disclaimer: See Chapter Eleven
12 chapters in one day is now my all time high. Mari: How high, can ya go, Lainie!! How high can ya go, Lainie! Me: We'll see.
As the students arrived at breakfast the next morning, each found a notice written on the gold plate in letters that glowed with a silver fire:
This evening
At 12:00 midnight
Madame Kokiri
Will demonstrate the ancient art of
Broom-Making.
Curfew will be waived
THIS EVENING ONLY!
Observers should assemble
In front of the castle
At 11:30 p.m.
WANDS ARE NOT ALLOWED!!
"What sort of rubbish is this?" Over at the Slytherin table, Draco Malfoy sneered loudly at the note. "Do we have to go? I don't want to stay up all night just to watch some old-fashioned arts and crafts."
At the Gryffindors, Hermione stared daggers at Draco. Ron also had objections, but they were more practical than Draco's. "Going down to the lake at midnight without a wand? How are we supposed to see?"
"Oh, don't worry your heads about that part; it's all been arranged," Ron's brother, Percy the Prefect smiled.
"You know already, don't you? What is it?"
Percy grinned like the holder of a map to buried treasure. "Wait and see."
In the end, they could barely wait. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, even Draco and his bully-boys--the worst that Slytherin had to offer, who dismissed a homemade broom as "hopelessly antique"--wanted to see what all the fuss was about, and so at 11:30 there they were, robed as if for class, in the dead of night in front of the school, along with every other student in the castle.
"Well, what'll it be?" Ron asked his brother Percy.
For answer, Percy Weasley, the Boys' Prefect of Gryffindor, produced from his robes a torch topped with oil-soaked rags in one hand and a Muggle cigarette-lighter in the other. One flick of the lighter brought the torch to full flame. None of the students realized that a single torch could cast such light. Then, when he touched his torch to those of the Prefects from the other houses, the students were sure the fire was enchanted. It HAD to be; how could ordinary flames be so bright?
"Right!" Percy Weasley called out. "Stay with your houses and no chattering!"
They all went down to the lake, stopping by a stream which fed the lake with melted snow from the mountains. The students were amazed. The entire faculty had also turned out to see this; Hagrid watched from behind the faculty; even the Ghosts glanced nervously about, but maintained a respectful silence. They all waited.
At the exact stroke of midnight, Kokiri and Kiki appeared-literally. They seemed to melt out of the woods. Their steps were deliberate, unhurried. Kokiri stopped before one graceful old willow. She turned to Kiki, who wordlessly took something that had been tucked into her belt, and handed it to her mother.
Almost everyone there gasped when they saw what it was. One of the greatest prizes in the Trophy Room was a silver dagger, with a curved blade like a miniature Arab scimitar, and set with rubies. Legend said that it was brought to England from the Crusades, and was owned by Merlin himself before being passed down to Godric Gryffindor.
Kokiri took the dagger in both hands and held it to her forehead for a minute. She seemed to be reciting or praying, but, even though her lips moved, nobody could hear a sound. As the four torches cast dancing shadows around them, she moved toward the tree, and toward one branch in particular. She brandished the dagger and
ZIP
It circled the branch in a single gesture, cutting through the bark. With only a moment's pause
ZIP
Again the knife flashed, cutting deeper into the branch. Some students thought they heard the tree moan.
ZIP
That third stroke was the last. Kokiri now held the branch in her hand. While everything up to now seemed ceremonial, her next moves were practical. She trimmed all the bark and twigs from the willow branch as quickly and efficiently as an old rancher shearing a sheep.
Once that was done, Kokiri and Kiki stepped into the stream. Nobody noticed until this moment that mother and daughter were barefoot. As Kokiri held the branch on the bottom of the stream, Kiki began weighing it down with rocks. After another minute, assured that the branch would not break to the surface and drift away, Kiki and Kokiri silently entered the forest where they had appeared, and seemed to vanish at once.
All of Hogwarts was silent. After an awkward minute the Prefects started leading the students back up to the school.
Hermione Granger was, of course, the first to speak. In the Gryffindor common room she went straight to the window that looked out on the lake. Harry stood next to her, trying to ask without words if she was all right.
She turned to Harry and smiled. "You know, Harry, I think I'm finally understanding what it means to be a witch. I've read and practiced and dreamed about it, of course. But I was just thinking of the mechanics, I guess you'd say. I thought you just had to learn the procedures, like the way my parents learned dentistry. I had no idea-" She turned back to the window.
Harry still couldn't find his tongue, so he went upstairs to bed, leaving Hermione to stare at the moon reflected in the lake.
Three days later at dawn those who were still interested (notably fewer, but Hermione Granger was among them) saw Kokiri and Kiki take the willow branch out of the stream, tie onto it the bristles of the old broom, which they had saved, and hang it to dry from a branch of the willow. Kokiri had chosen a spot that received several hours of direct sunshine each day. The broom hung undisturbed for three days.
Three dawns later, only Kokiri and Kiki appeared by the lake to untie the broom. As soon as Kokiri was done with this part, she handed the broom to Kiki. At once, Kiki looked up in surprise.
"Did you hear that, mother?"
"Hear what?"
"I could swear the broom spoke just now. It said. . ." Kiki's voice caught. "It said, 'Thank you.'"
Kokiri opened her arms wide to embrace Kiki, who still clung to the broom even as her mother clung to her. "Let them keep their academies and their factory-made brooms. At times like this, I wouldn't trade my life for anyone else's," she said quietly. After another minute she let go. "I think we've delayed breakfast long enough. Let's get back."
As they returned to Hogwarts, they were followed from the edge of the Forbidden Forest by another pair of eyes.
***
If you don't know what I'm going to say, you suffer from short term memory loss
12 chapters in one day is now my all time high. Mari: How high, can ya go, Lainie!! How high can ya go, Lainie! Me: We'll see.
As the students arrived at breakfast the next morning, each found a notice written on the gold plate in letters that glowed with a silver fire:
This evening
At 12:00 midnight
Madame Kokiri
Will demonstrate the ancient art of
Broom-Making.
Curfew will be waived
THIS EVENING ONLY!
Observers should assemble
In front of the castle
At 11:30 p.m.
WANDS ARE NOT ALLOWED!!
"What sort of rubbish is this?" Over at the Slytherin table, Draco Malfoy sneered loudly at the note. "Do we have to go? I don't want to stay up all night just to watch some old-fashioned arts and crafts."
At the Gryffindors, Hermione stared daggers at Draco. Ron also had objections, but they were more practical than Draco's. "Going down to the lake at midnight without a wand? How are we supposed to see?"
"Oh, don't worry your heads about that part; it's all been arranged," Ron's brother, Percy the Prefect smiled.
"You know already, don't you? What is it?"
Percy grinned like the holder of a map to buried treasure. "Wait and see."
In the end, they could barely wait. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, even Draco and his bully-boys--the worst that Slytherin had to offer, who dismissed a homemade broom as "hopelessly antique"--wanted to see what all the fuss was about, and so at 11:30 there they were, robed as if for class, in the dead of night in front of the school, along with every other student in the castle.
"Well, what'll it be?" Ron asked his brother Percy.
For answer, Percy Weasley, the Boys' Prefect of Gryffindor, produced from his robes a torch topped with oil-soaked rags in one hand and a Muggle cigarette-lighter in the other. One flick of the lighter brought the torch to full flame. None of the students realized that a single torch could cast such light. Then, when he touched his torch to those of the Prefects from the other houses, the students were sure the fire was enchanted. It HAD to be; how could ordinary flames be so bright?
"Right!" Percy Weasley called out. "Stay with your houses and no chattering!"
They all went down to the lake, stopping by a stream which fed the lake with melted snow from the mountains. The students were amazed. The entire faculty had also turned out to see this; Hagrid watched from behind the faculty; even the Ghosts glanced nervously about, but maintained a respectful silence. They all waited.
At the exact stroke of midnight, Kokiri and Kiki appeared-literally. They seemed to melt out of the woods. Their steps were deliberate, unhurried. Kokiri stopped before one graceful old willow. She turned to Kiki, who wordlessly took something that had been tucked into her belt, and handed it to her mother.
Almost everyone there gasped when they saw what it was. One of the greatest prizes in the Trophy Room was a silver dagger, with a curved blade like a miniature Arab scimitar, and set with rubies. Legend said that it was brought to England from the Crusades, and was owned by Merlin himself before being passed down to Godric Gryffindor.
Kokiri took the dagger in both hands and held it to her forehead for a minute. She seemed to be reciting or praying, but, even though her lips moved, nobody could hear a sound. As the four torches cast dancing shadows around them, she moved toward the tree, and toward one branch in particular. She brandished the dagger and
ZIP
It circled the branch in a single gesture, cutting through the bark. With only a moment's pause
ZIP
Again the knife flashed, cutting deeper into the branch. Some students thought they heard the tree moan.
ZIP
That third stroke was the last. Kokiri now held the branch in her hand. While everything up to now seemed ceremonial, her next moves were practical. She trimmed all the bark and twigs from the willow branch as quickly and efficiently as an old rancher shearing a sheep.
Once that was done, Kokiri and Kiki stepped into the stream. Nobody noticed until this moment that mother and daughter were barefoot. As Kokiri held the branch on the bottom of the stream, Kiki began weighing it down with rocks. After another minute, assured that the branch would not break to the surface and drift away, Kiki and Kokiri silently entered the forest where they had appeared, and seemed to vanish at once.
All of Hogwarts was silent. After an awkward minute the Prefects started leading the students back up to the school.
Hermione Granger was, of course, the first to speak. In the Gryffindor common room she went straight to the window that looked out on the lake. Harry stood next to her, trying to ask without words if she was all right.
She turned to Harry and smiled. "You know, Harry, I think I'm finally understanding what it means to be a witch. I've read and practiced and dreamed about it, of course. But I was just thinking of the mechanics, I guess you'd say. I thought you just had to learn the procedures, like the way my parents learned dentistry. I had no idea-" She turned back to the window.
Harry still couldn't find his tongue, so he went upstairs to bed, leaving Hermione to stare at the moon reflected in the lake.
Three days later at dawn those who were still interested (notably fewer, but Hermione Granger was among them) saw Kokiri and Kiki take the willow branch out of the stream, tie onto it the bristles of the old broom, which they had saved, and hang it to dry from a branch of the willow. Kokiri had chosen a spot that received several hours of direct sunshine each day. The broom hung undisturbed for three days.
Three dawns later, only Kokiri and Kiki appeared by the lake to untie the broom. As soon as Kokiri was done with this part, she handed the broom to Kiki. At once, Kiki looked up in surprise.
"Did you hear that, mother?"
"Hear what?"
"I could swear the broom spoke just now. It said. . ." Kiki's voice caught. "It said, 'Thank you.'"
Kokiri opened her arms wide to embrace Kiki, who still clung to the broom even as her mother clung to her. "Let them keep their academies and their factory-made brooms. At times like this, I wouldn't trade my life for anyone else's," she said quietly. After another minute she let go. "I think we've delayed breakfast long enough. Let's get back."
As they returned to Hogwarts, they were followed from the edge of the Forbidden Forest by another pair of eyes.
***
If you don't know what I'm going to say, you suffer from short term memory loss