The next afternoon, Oliver was in his bedroom getting ready to go to his
parents' house when he heard a voice in his living room.
"Oliver, what do you want me to wear?"
He walked into the living room and was surprised to see Adrianna's head sticking up through a hole in the floor, but he quickly realized that she'd come through the tunnel that linked their rooms.
"What did you come through there for? You're going to be a mess when you climb out of there!"
"No I won't, I used a cleaning charm on the whole thing. Speaking of which, looks like your rooms could use some cleaning. Scourgify!" The dust that covered the tabletops vanished instantly.
Oliver gave Adrianna's question some thought before answering. "Wear some nice robes and your traveling cloak, and some sort of nice shoes, dragon hide if you have them. I want you to make a good first impression."
"Ok," and she disappeared inside the tunnel, pulling the trap door shut behind her.
She returned a few minutes later in a set of turquoise robes, black dragon hide dress shoes and her gray traveling cloak. From Hogsmeade, Oliver and Adrianna apparated to his parent's house on the outskirts of Glasgow, Scotland. Oliver knocked with the brass door knocker, and his mother answered the door with a smile.
"Oliver, it's so good to see you again!" she cried, giving him a bear hug.
"It's good to be home," Oliver replied. He grinned and hugged his mum back. She was a slender middle aged witch of medium height with dark brown hair and green eyes that contrasted deeply with her pale skin. He had not inherited any of her looks except her smile. Other than that, he was the spitting image of his father.
"Well, let's not stand here on the doorstep all day and freeze. Come in, come in," she said, holding the door open. "And you must be Adrianna," she continued, shaking hands with Adrianna. "We're so glad that you could come. I'm Oliver's mum, Katherine."
"Pleased to meet you. You have a lovely home," said Adrianna, looking at her surroundings.
"Thank you," replied Mrs. Wood as she opened a set of double doors off the entryway. "Now go on and have a seat in the living room. Would you either of you care for a cup of tea?"
"Tea would be wonderful, thanks," Oliver replied. He took Adrianna's hand and led her into the living room while his mum bustled into the kitchen to get the tea tray.
His dad was sitting in an arm chair in the living room reading the Daily Prophet. When he heard Oliver approaching, he folded up the paper and stood to greet his son.
"Hi dad," Oliver said as he walked across the living room.
"Hello son," his dad replied cheerfully. He clapped Oliver on the shoulder and slapped him on the back in greeting, and then tousled his hair. Oliver shot an annoyed look at him and quickly smoothed it down again. "How's my lad like being back at Hogwarts? Not letting the students give you too much hassle are you?"
"It's really great, the kids are pretty well behaved for the most part. Dad, I want you to meet my girlfriend Adrianna. Adrianna, this is my dad Andrew."
"Nice to meet you," they said in unison.
Oliver's mum returned a few moments later with the tea tray, and they all sat down in the living room and sipped tea.
"You know," his mum began, "There are a lot of rumors circulating about how He-who-must-not-be-named was killed. But nobody seems to really know. The Daily Prophet said that two teachers died trying to protect students, and that two other teachers and a third person killed the Dark Lord and then escaped from the death eaters. They got a quote from Dumbledore, but all he said was that he knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that You-know-who is dead and that people need not fear him any longer. Being a teacher, you must surely be able to tell us something more," she pried, looking right at Oliver.
He wished she hadn't brought it up, as he really wasn't in the mood to talk about the ordeal. But he knew his parents wouldn't give it a rest until they'd heard all about it from him. "The two teachers that were killed were Severus Snape and Rubeus Hagrid. The people that fought Voldemort were myself, Adrianna, and Harry Potter."
"Don't say the Dark Lord's name!" his father yelled.
His mother looked even paler than usual. "You- you fought..."
"Voldemort, yes, and so did Adrianna and Harry. And since I was one of those who fought him, I see no reason not to say Voldemort," he replied, his temper beginning to rise.
"I knew that Potter had something to do with it. Every time something major happens he's involved. And I suppose you went along with him, playing the hero. Just because you were sorted into Gryffindor when you were a schoolboy doesn't mean you have to show off all the time. There's a fine line between bravery and foolishness you know," his father said in admonition.
Oliver felt himself growing more and more angry as he listened to his father speak. He sat his teacup down with such force that it cracked. "I wasn't playing the hero! For your information, I wouldn't have even been there if it'd been up to me! Maybe I should've been sorted into Slytherin like you, and then I could have been defending Voldemort that day instead of fighting him!"
Oliver was seething. He and his father had had disagreements in the past about the houses that they'd been sorted into as students, but Oliver couldn't remember ever being this furious before. He felt Adrianna put a hand on his upper arm to get his attention.
"Oliver, could you show me where the bathroom is?" she asked, giving him a meaningful look.
"Yeah sure," he replied, trying to control his voice. He stood up and quickly left the room with Adrianna right behind him. He led her upstairs to the bathroom, and they walked in together, shutting the door behind them.
"Are you alright?" she asked him.
"He doesn't know what happened! I was just reffing a quidditch game, I had no idea that I was going to end up somewhere in the woods surrounded by death eaters and fighting Voldemort! I never asked to be a part of it! He thinks just because I was a Gryffindor that I went charging into things, but he's wrong!" he shouted. He was feeling an intense mixture of anger and frustration.
"I know, I know," Adrianna said soothingly, massaging his shoulders. "He shouldn't have jumped to conclusions like that. But if you want your dad to understand, you have to tell him what happened."
"I don't feel like talking about what happened."
"Fine. But if that's the case, I think you should first apologize to your father for the comment about him being a Slytherin. Then just tell him that you're not ready to talk about what happened, but when you are you'll tell him exactly what took place."
"Me apologize! He's the one who instigated it!" But Oliver knew that Adrianna was right. She massaged his shoulders until he felt his anger receding, and then they went back downstairs. It looked as though his mum and dad had just had a similar conversation. Mrs. Wood looked at both her husband and Oliver and then said "Well, I think I'll just clear away the tea things... I'll be in the kitchen if you need anything."
"Here, let me help you," Adrianna said quickly, grabbing Oliver's cracked teacup and leaving the room with her.
"Dad, I'm sorry," Oliver blurted out at the same time as his father said "Son, I'm sorry." Oliver looked up at his dad and gave him a sort of half- smile. "Please, just hear me out," Oliver continued. "I'm sorry for what I said about Slytherins, it was uncalled for. I'm really not ready to talk about what happened yet, but I promise you, when I am ready, you and mum will be the first people I tell."
"I'm sorry too," his dad said. "I made a stupid accusation, and I showed no regard for how you must be feeling. You witnessed the deaths of two of your colleagues and fought for your own life. I'm grateful that you even lived to tell the tale." There was a short pause in the conversation. "Well," Mr. Wood continued, "why don't you go fetch your mum and your girlfriend from the kitchen?"
Oliver nodded and went to tell them that it was alright for them to come back.
The next couple of hours passed rather smoothly as they played card games with a self-shuffling deck and talked about nothing in particular. Oliver was relieved to see that Adrianna really seemed to be hitting it off with his parents. However, he knew that the subject of blood was bound to come up sooner or later, and when it did, he feared that there might be another scene similar to the one that had occurred earlier that afternoon.
It happened near the end of dinner.
"So umm.. Mr. Wood-" Adrianna began.
"Call me Andrew," he interrupted with a kind smile on his face.
"-Sorry, Andrew, what kind of work do you do?"
"I'm an Unspeakable. I work at the Ministry of Magic in the Department of Mysteries."
"Oh that must be fascinating! And Katherine, what do you do?"
"I'm just a housewife. I do love to bake though. I make cakes and other baked goods for people upon request."
"That must be fun."
"What do your parents do?" Mr. Wood asked Adrianna.
"My dad's a computer technician, and my mom's a housewife as well."
"Your dad's a what?"
"A computer technician. He's a muggle, it's a muggle job," she explained lamely.
"Oh, then you're a half-blood?"
"No, my mom's a muggle too."
"I see." A frown had replaced his kind smile, and he gave Oliver a look that seemed to say "what are you playing at". Oliver could tell that his dad was trying very hard to control himself.
"Adrianna dear, would you mind giving me a hand with dessert?" asked Mrs. Wood.
"Yes of course," Adrianna replied, giving her a grateful look and leaving the room with her.
"You're dating a muggle-born?" Oliver's dad asked in a hushed voice as soon as his mom and Adrianna were out of earshot.
"Yes, and unless I'm mistaken, you had absolutely no objections to her until you found out what her blood is."
"I have to admit, she's a lovely lass. But she's not exactly what I had in mind for you, son. I was hoping that you would settle down with a nice, Scottish, pureblood witch."
"Well, that really leaves me with a lot of choices. There might be a whole two girls that fit that description," Oliver said sarcastically.
"Don't you get smart with me, lad! I'm trying to have a civilized conversation with you."
"I'm not being smart, I'm being realistic. We both know there aren't that many purebloods left, and to find one that's Scottish would be damn near impossible. Look, I knew that you wouldn't be thrilled when you found out that Adrianna's a muggle-born. But she's truly the most amazing girl I've ever met. I love her more than I ever thought it was possible to love someone. Without her I feel incomplete, like the best part of me is missing."
"She's not worthy of marrying into this family," his father hissed venomously. He stood up from the table and gripped its edge tightly, leaning toward his son. Oliver stood as well. He didn't want his father to think that he could be intimidated. "For generation after generation we have kept our blood clean," his father continued, "and I won't stand for a mudblood dirtying it."
"There are more important things than blood," Oliver said coolly. He was clenching his fists so tightly that he could feel the nails digging into his palms. "She's one of the most skilled witches I've ever met, she's an awesome quidditch player-"
Mr. Wood's upper lip was twitching, a sign that he was almost at the boiling point yet trying to keep his cool. "You're a traitor to your family and your blood. I hope you know what you're getting into if you marry her."
Just then, Mrs. Wood and Adrianna returned with a pitcher of lemonade and a plate filled with homemade cauldron cakes. Oliver's mother cleared the table with a wave of her wand, and the four of them sat down for dessert. The tension in the room was so thick that Oliver thought he could have cut it with a knife. Even though his mother made the best desserts on earth, Oliver just picked at his cauldron cake. He didn't feel much like eating anymore.
"Sorry to eat and run mum, but Adrianna and I have got to go back to Hogwarts now," Oliver said not long after his mother had cleared the dessert dishes from the table.
"Bye then, Dad," he said as he strode into the entryway.
He could hear Adrianna saying goodbye behind him, and then both she and Mrs. Wood accompanied him into the entryway. His mother gave him a concerned look as she handed them their cloaks.
"I'll try and make him see reason, dear," she said, giving him a hug.
"Thanks mum," Oliver said appreciatively.
"And Adrianna, it was wonderful to meet you. I hope that you'll come by with Oliver again sometime." Mrs. Wood gave Adrianna a hug as well.
"Thanks for having me," Adrianna replied.
"Ready?" Oliver asked her. She nodded. They apparated back to the village of Hogsmeade, and then walked the short distance from the village to the castle in the cold winter twilight.
"Oliver, what do you want me to wear?"
He walked into the living room and was surprised to see Adrianna's head sticking up through a hole in the floor, but he quickly realized that she'd come through the tunnel that linked their rooms.
"What did you come through there for? You're going to be a mess when you climb out of there!"
"No I won't, I used a cleaning charm on the whole thing. Speaking of which, looks like your rooms could use some cleaning. Scourgify!" The dust that covered the tabletops vanished instantly.
Oliver gave Adrianna's question some thought before answering. "Wear some nice robes and your traveling cloak, and some sort of nice shoes, dragon hide if you have them. I want you to make a good first impression."
"Ok," and she disappeared inside the tunnel, pulling the trap door shut behind her.
She returned a few minutes later in a set of turquoise robes, black dragon hide dress shoes and her gray traveling cloak. From Hogsmeade, Oliver and Adrianna apparated to his parent's house on the outskirts of Glasgow, Scotland. Oliver knocked with the brass door knocker, and his mother answered the door with a smile.
"Oliver, it's so good to see you again!" she cried, giving him a bear hug.
"It's good to be home," Oliver replied. He grinned and hugged his mum back. She was a slender middle aged witch of medium height with dark brown hair and green eyes that contrasted deeply with her pale skin. He had not inherited any of her looks except her smile. Other than that, he was the spitting image of his father.
"Well, let's not stand here on the doorstep all day and freeze. Come in, come in," she said, holding the door open. "And you must be Adrianna," she continued, shaking hands with Adrianna. "We're so glad that you could come. I'm Oliver's mum, Katherine."
"Pleased to meet you. You have a lovely home," said Adrianna, looking at her surroundings.
"Thank you," replied Mrs. Wood as she opened a set of double doors off the entryway. "Now go on and have a seat in the living room. Would you either of you care for a cup of tea?"
"Tea would be wonderful, thanks," Oliver replied. He took Adrianna's hand and led her into the living room while his mum bustled into the kitchen to get the tea tray.
His dad was sitting in an arm chair in the living room reading the Daily Prophet. When he heard Oliver approaching, he folded up the paper and stood to greet his son.
"Hi dad," Oliver said as he walked across the living room.
"Hello son," his dad replied cheerfully. He clapped Oliver on the shoulder and slapped him on the back in greeting, and then tousled his hair. Oliver shot an annoyed look at him and quickly smoothed it down again. "How's my lad like being back at Hogwarts? Not letting the students give you too much hassle are you?"
"It's really great, the kids are pretty well behaved for the most part. Dad, I want you to meet my girlfriend Adrianna. Adrianna, this is my dad Andrew."
"Nice to meet you," they said in unison.
Oliver's mum returned a few moments later with the tea tray, and they all sat down in the living room and sipped tea.
"You know," his mum began, "There are a lot of rumors circulating about how He-who-must-not-be-named was killed. But nobody seems to really know. The Daily Prophet said that two teachers died trying to protect students, and that two other teachers and a third person killed the Dark Lord and then escaped from the death eaters. They got a quote from Dumbledore, but all he said was that he knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that You-know-who is dead and that people need not fear him any longer. Being a teacher, you must surely be able to tell us something more," she pried, looking right at Oliver.
He wished she hadn't brought it up, as he really wasn't in the mood to talk about the ordeal. But he knew his parents wouldn't give it a rest until they'd heard all about it from him. "The two teachers that were killed were Severus Snape and Rubeus Hagrid. The people that fought Voldemort were myself, Adrianna, and Harry Potter."
"Don't say the Dark Lord's name!" his father yelled.
His mother looked even paler than usual. "You- you fought..."
"Voldemort, yes, and so did Adrianna and Harry. And since I was one of those who fought him, I see no reason not to say Voldemort," he replied, his temper beginning to rise.
"I knew that Potter had something to do with it. Every time something major happens he's involved. And I suppose you went along with him, playing the hero. Just because you were sorted into Gryffindor when you were a schoolboy doesn't mean you have to show off all the time. There's a fine line between bravery and foolishness you know," his father said in admonition.
Oliver felt himself growing more and more angry as he listened to his father speak. He sat his teacup down with such force that it cracked. "I wasn't playing the hero! For your information, I wouldn't have even been there if it'd been up to me! Maybe I should've been sorted into Slytherin like you, and then I could have been defending Voldemort that day instead of fighting him!"
Oliver was seething. He and his father had had disagreements in the past about the houses that they'd been sorted into as students, but Oliver couldn't remember ever being this furious before. He felt Adrianna put a hand on his upper arm to get his attention.
"Oliver, could you show me where the bathroom is?" she asked, giving him a meaningful look.
"Yeah sure," he replied, trying to control his voice. He stood up and quickly left the room with Adrianna right behind him. He led her upstairs to the bathroom, and they walked in together, shutting the door behind them.
"Are you alright?" she asked him.
"He doesn't know what happened! I was just reffing a quidditch game, I had no idea that I was going to end up somewhere in the woods surrounded by death eaters and fighting Voldemort! I never asked to be a part of it! He thinks just because I was a Gryffindor that I went charging into things, but he's wrong!" he shouted. He was feeling an intense mixture of anger and frustration.
"I know, I know," Adrianna said soothingly, massaging his shoulders. "He shouldn't have jumped to conclusions like that. But if you want your dad to understand, you have to tell him what happened."
"I don't feel like talking about what happened."
"Fine. But if that's the case, I think you should first apologize to your father for the comment about him being a Slytherin. Then just tell him that you're not ready to talk about what happened, but when you are you'll tell him exactly what took place."
"Me apologize! He's the one who instigated it!" But Oliver knew that Adrianna was right. She massaged his shoulders until he felt his anger receding, and then they went back downstairs. It looked as though his mum and dad had just had a similar conversation. Mrs. Wood looked at both her husband and Oliver and then said "Well, I think I'll just clear away the tea things... I'll be in the kitchen if you need anything."
"Here, let me help you," Adrianna said quickly, grabbing Oliver's cracked teacup and leaving the room with her.
"Dad, I'm sorry," Oliver blurted out at the same time as his father said "Son, I'm sorry." Oliver looked up at his dad and gave him a sort of half- smile. "Please, just hear me out," Oliver continued. "I'm sorry for what I said about Slytherins, it was uncalled for. I'm really not ready to talk about what happened yet, but I promise you, when I am ready, you and mum will be the first people I tell."
"I'm sorry too," his dad said. "I made a stupid accusation, and I showed no regard for how you must be feeling. You witnessed the deaths of two of your colleagues and fought for your own life. I'm grateful that you even lived to tell the tale." There was a short pause in the conversation. "Well," Mr. Wood continued, "why don't you go fetch your mum and your girlfriend from the kitchen?"
Oliver nodded and went to tell them that it was alright for them to come back.
The next couple of hours passed rather smoothly as they played card games with a self-shuffling deck and talked about nothing in particular. Oliver was relieved to see that Adrianna really seemed to be hitting it off with his parents. However, he knew that the subject of blood was bound to come up sooner or later, and when it did, he feared that there might be another scene similar to the one that had occurred earlier that afternoon.
It happened near the end of dinner.
"So umm.. Mr. Wood-" Adrianna began.
"Call me Andrew," he interrupted with a kind smile on his face.
"-Sorry, Andrew, what kind of work do you do?"
"I'm an Unspeakable. I work at the Ministry of Magic in the Department of Mysteries."
"Oh that must be fascinating! And Katherine, what do you do?"
"I'm just a housewife. I do love to bake though. I make cakes and other baked goods for people upon request."
"That must be fun."
"What do your parents do?" Mr. Wood asked Adrianna.
"My dad's a computer technician, and my mom's a housewife as well."
"Your dad's a what?"
"A computer technician. He's a muggle, it's a muggle job," she explained lamely.
"Oh, then you're a half-blood?"
"No, my mom's a muggle too."
"I see." A frown had replaced his kind smile, and he gave Oliver a look that seemed to say "what are you playing at". Oliver could tell that his dad was trying very hard to control himself.
"Adrianna dear, would you mind giving me a hand with dessert?" asked Mrs. Wood.
"Yes of course," Adrianna replied, giving her a grateful look and leaving the room with her.
"You're dating a muggle-born?" Oliver's dad asked in a hushed voice as soon as his mom and Adrianna were out of earshot.
"Yes, and unless I'm mistaken, you had absolutely no objections to her until you found out what her blood is."
"I have to admit, she's a lovely lass. But she's not exactly what I had in mind for you, son. I was hoping that you would settle down with a nice, Scottish, pureblood witch."
"Well, that really leaves me with a lot of choices. There might be a whole two girls that fit that description," Oliver said sarcastically.
"Don't you get smart with me, lad! I'm trying to have a civilized conversation with you."
"I'm not being smart, I'm being realistic. We both know there aren't that many purebloods left, and to find one that's Scottish would be damn near impossible. Look, I knew that you wouldn't be thrilled when you found out that Adrianna's a muggle-born. But she's truly the most amazing girl I've ever met. I love her more than I ever thought it was possible to love someone. Without her I feel incomplete, like the best part of me is missing."
"She's not worthy of marrying into this family," his father hissed venomously. He stood up from the table and gripped its edge tightly, leaning toward his son. Oliver stood as well. He didn't want his father to think that he could be intimidated. "For generation after generation we have kept our blood clean," his father continued, "and I won't stand for a mudblood dirtying it."
"There are more important things than blood," Oliver said coolly. He was clenching his fists so tightly that he could feel the nails digging into his palms. "She's one of the most skilled witches I've ever met, she's an awesome quidditch player-"
Mr. Wood's upper lip was twitching, a sign that he was almost at the boiling point yet trying to keep his cool. "You're a traitor to your family and your blood. I hope you know what you're getting into if you marry her."
Just then, Mrs. Wood and Adrianna returned with a pitcher of lemonade and a plate filled with homemade cauldron cakes. Oliver's mother cleared the table with a wave of her wand, and the four of them sat down for dessert. The tension in the room was so thick that Oliver thought he could have cut it with a knife. Even though his mother made the best desserts on earth, Oliver just picked at his cauldron cake. He didn't feel much like eating anymore.
"Sorry to eat and run mum, but Adrianna and I have got to go back to Hogwarts now," Oliver said not long after his mother had cleared the dessert dishes from the table.
"Bye then, Dad," he said as he strode into the entryway.
He could hear Adrianna saying goodbye behind him, and then both she and Mrs. Wood accompanied him into the entryway. His mother gave him a concerned look as she handed them their cloaks.
"I'll try and make him see reason, dear," she said, giving him a hug.
"Thanks mum," Oliver said appreciatively.
"And Adrianna, it was wonderful to meet you. I hope that you'll come by with Oliver again sometime." Mrs. Wood gave Adrianna a hug as well.
"Thanks for having me," Adrianna replied.
"Ready?" Oliver asked her. She nodded. They apparated back to the village of Hogsmeade, and then walked the short distance from the village to the castle in the cold winter twilight.