Lydia found her room to be much the same as it had been at her old home. It had the things she had kept in her room at her uncle's house, too. But it was more spacious, with bigger wardrobes, a desk with lots of stationery supplies. It also had actual floor space. She walked around, marvelling at the way she was not tripping over things. This was an improvement. This was a space where she could grow up and become a teenager. And there was a window, which would have a different view. It did have a view. It was not the neighbours' gardens and the backs of other houses. It was a long garden, lit at intervals by lanterns. There were dark masses of trees to either side and goodness knows what beyond in the darkness.
A light tapping on her door drew her away from the window.
"Come in," she called.
Freddie stuck his head around the edge of the door. "Nice room," he said casting a glance around the space. "I've got a room. It's got like a five-metre-high ceiling."
"What good is that?" Lydia frowned.
Freddie grinned, tucked his elbows into his sides, clapped his hands and squeaked. "I've got a trampoline!"
"In your room?"
"Yeah!"
"No, you're joking."
"Yeah-uh! So have! It's huge! It's, like, as big as your room and a million times more bouncy. Ohmygod, I've always wanted a trampoline. Are you jealous?"
Lydia smiled and thought for a moment. "No. I'm just really happy to see you happy. Did you want me to be jealous?"
"Not enough to wish you had one," he explained. "Just enough to want to come and use mine, sometimes."
"Oh, yeah. I'll do that. Show me it!"
"Nah-ah," Freddie shook his head. "We've got to tell Sophie first."
"Of course," said Lydia, a little shocked at herself for forgetting Sophie for a moment. "I wonder what she's got."
Freddie grinned. "Probably a super-long room where she can zip up and down on her broom all day."
"Where's her room, do you think?"
"Er, look around. This is your door, here. That's my door, there," he indicated a door a couple of metres to their right.
"That can't be your door," Lydia protested. "I've got a wardrobe about there."
"Magic, babes. Get with the programme." Freddie said in a tone dripping with mock pity. "What was it your uncle said? Non-Includian?"
"Non-Euclidian," Lydia corrected. "Not following the usual rules of geometry."
"Yeah, whatever. That will be Sophie's door, over there."
Lydia walked a couple of metres to the left and was about to tap on the door.
"You two!" Sophie burst from the door, saw them, and dragged them back through with her.
It was a nice enough room, not dissimilar to Lydia's own. If this was so exciting to Sophie, Lydia wondered what her friend's home must be like.
"It's like Lydia's," Freddie observed.
"Yeah, but wait 'til you see what's through this door," a wide-eyed Sophie challenged them.
She stepped up to the door she had indicated. It was the same as any other internal door in the house. She flung it open.
"No freakin' way!" Freddie protested.
Lydia stood there, open-mouthed.
"Yes way," Sophie contradicted. "It's not as big as the one at school but isn't it incredible?!"
Before them was, well, a quidditch pitch. It was scaled down compared to the one at Hogwarts, with one set of goal hoops and no stands for spectators. On the other hand, they could not make up two teams of seven as there were only three of them. It would be perfect for practice sessions.
"And there's a broom each!" Sophie hinted.
"Excuse me ladies and gentleman," a voice piped up behind them. It was Fenton the Free-Elf. "His Excellency, Baron von Bonehead, invites you to dine with him."
"You heard that?" Lydia asked, horrified.
"No, miss. But your uncle has exceptional hearing for a man of his vintage," Fenton smiled.
Lydia blushed.
"Have you been cheeking your elders and betters, Lydia?" Freddie accused.
"Elders, maybe," she admitted.
"Oh, all your elders are betters, youngster," Freddie grinned, with a glance at Sophie.
"So, basically all of us," Sophie confirmed, grinning also.
Fenton led them back to the entrance hall by a completely different, and shorter, route. Off to one side, through a double door, was a smart, but not fancy, dining room. It held a round dining table with a white table cloth and five chairs. A crystal vase glistened on the table, where sunlight streamed in through the windows. The vase was filled with exotic-looking flowers. A pink and white striped petal lay on the tablecloth next to the vase. Ambrose and Catherine were already seated. Ambrose stood as they entered.
Ambrose smiled at the elf. "Ah, thank you, Fenton."
"My pleasure, Baron," Fenton smirked.
Ambrose chuckled and indicated to the students to take seats around the table. Ambrose was the last to sit down.
"Mr Fenton will not be joining us for dinner. Apparently, it is not the done thing for elves to dine with humans and, much as I miss his company, I respect his sensibilities.
"So, my friend," Ambrose continued, turning to Fenton. "Please retire to your butler's pantry at your liberty. I only ask that you pass by the kitchen and send in our meal, in the time-honoured manner."
"Certainly, sir," Fenton smiled. "Until later, everyone. Enjoy your meal."
The elf left with a quiet pop.
"What's for dinner, uncs?"
Ambrose gave Lydia a hawkish stare.
"Sorry. What's for dinner, Baron?" Lydia corrected herself.
Lydia's mother giggled and Ambrose broke an indulgent smile.
"I had considered a light meal of snails' legs and quails' elbows," he jested. "But, taking into account the cold turn of the weather, I took myself off to the local chippy and furnished us with fish suppers all round."
Within seconds platefuls of battered fish, chips, and peas appeared on the table in front of them. It was the style of service they were used to from school. There were also plates of bread and butter, a pot of tea and a variety of soft drinks. Ambrose confessed that he had asked Fenton to add the mushy peas as these were not available from fish and chip shops in the south.
It was a jolly sort of dinner. The Hogwarts students told the elders more about life at Hogwarts in general and the events of the past term in particular. In return the elders told them about the tribulations of house-hunting, moving, and redecoration. Thankfully they kept it brief. Apart from the tales of Fearghal Finnigan's antics it was not entirely enthralling to the youngsters.
"Do you know where the cats have gone, Ambrose?" Sophie asked after they had finished eating.
"Not specifically," he said. "But there is a cat door out of and, conversely, into the boot room/utility room. It also has a couple of cat beds and a multiplicity of other places – nooks, crannies and the like – where they might make themselves comfortable. I bought extra fish and asked Fenton to put it out for them to eat. I'm sure, with all that countryside out there, they will be able to amuse themselves prowling and patrolling. But if you leave your door ajar Elsa will be able to join you. I don't imagine that, after Hogwarts, they will have any trouble navigating our little house."
A look passed between Ambrose and Catherine.
"I'm sure they will be able to go wherever they like," Lydia's mum said. "I haven't had any sort of allergy since we moved here. This might be my opportunity to make friends with Xander at last."
"Is this how it's going to be, uncle?" Lydia wondered. "Is this really going to be our home, now? For always?"
Ambrose nodded.
"It is, my love," Catherine confirmed.
"It's amazing!" Freddie yipped. "The ballroom and the trampoline…"
"…And the Quidditch pitch…" Sophie added.
"…And the libraries," Lydia chipped in.
"Quite so," Ambrose smiled. "I am thoroughly delighted with it. There is also a swimming pool, I gather. I have not had the opportunity to hunt it down, yet. I gather it takes itself outside, when the weather is sufficiently clement."
"Um…" Sophie began.
Ambrose raised his eyebrows. "I imagine you want to be away to your rooms to take advantage of all they have to offer."
"If that's all right?"
"Of course it is, my dear young lady." He looked at Freddie. "I would only warn that you let your dinners settle before you use the trampoline."
Freddie grinned.
They returned to Sophie's room by yet another route, quite a long one this time. They felt their stomachs were settled enough to risk a game of one-on-one Quidditch, taking it in turns to be the goalie. Sophie flew rings around Freddie and stole every shot when she played chaser against him. With Sophie in the goalie's position Lydia outclassed Freddie who, only by a fluke, managed to score one goal. Lydia against Sophie, with Freddie in goal, was something different again. Lydia had watched earlier how Sophie had intercepted Freddie's shots and made them her own. When Lydia had the quaffle she held it close and flew almost into the goal rings before she shot at them. Sophie saw the sense in this and adopted a similar tactic. A better goalkeeper would have been able to keep them away, but Freddie did not relish the confrontation. The score would have been even between the girls but for an audacious play by Sophie.
Lydia dodged Freddie and made to shoot the quaffle through the left ring. Sophie shot at full speed from left to right so close she skimmed two of the rings. She managed to catch the quaffle centimetres from the left ring. Then she fumbled it past the pole of the centre ring and slipped it through the right ring at the narrowest of angles. It bounced off the inside of the goal ring, passing through to score.
As Sophie swooped around the practice ground on a lap of triumph, Freddie stared at the goal ring and shook his head.
"Not bad," he said.
Lydia nearly fell off her broom laughing.
After that they agreed that quidditch was over for the evening. They flew back to the door to stack their brooms in the rack which stood next to it. The girls declined Freddie's invitation to use his trampoline. They explained that it had been a long day, they were queasy from flying after dinner, and there would be time for trampolining in the morning. Freddie was disappointed, of course, but took the last excuse as a definite promise that they would join him on the trampoline. Secretly, Sophie intended to find out how fast the brooms could go when doing circuits of the practice ground. Secretly, Lydia wanted to explore her own room, to make sure there was no hidden surprise she had missed. Secretly, Freddie was planning to get used to his trampoline by himself so these sporty girls would not humiliate him when they tried it.
5