Night of the Broken Glass, Revisited
C1: Less Than Normal
[Disclaimer: J.K. Rowing owns the original work. I own whatever I write/create. Don't steal and don't sue.]
A sullen howl rose up in accord with the waning crescent moon. Silently, the streetlamps flickered into united darkness. The only sound in the night was the whispering of the wind in the leaves. A minute or so after the streetlamps had gone dark, a dark gray creature padded onto the street. It sat down and looked to the moon, revealing itself as a large wolf. Its golden eyes reflected the bare moonlight as it scanned the horizon.
Several minutes later, a sharper wind picked up and rustled the trees harder. The wolf folded its ears back, eyes narrowing as a barely audible sound came from the trees at the end of the street. It stood, muscles tensing and hackles lifting with a low growl. A cloaked figure strode out from the trees, their movements fluid and silent. The wolf went quiet and bounded to the cloaked figure.
A pale, bleeding hand emerged from the cloak and the wolf whimpered sympathetically. It gently licked at the person's hand until the blood had been cleaned away. The gash on the person's palm stopped bleeding, the skin healing together swiftly.
"It's all right," the person, a man, said in a quiet, deep voice. "That was the only cut I received. You should be more concerned about what's just happened." The wolf backed away a few feet and closed its eyes. It began to change and shift, abruptly becoming a young, gray-haired woman. The man sighed and pushed the cloak's hood from his head. After casting a furtive glance around the street, he pushed the cloak away from his body and revealed a small bundle.
The woman took the bundle from him and gently moved the cloth until she uncovered a small, sleeping baby girl. The child whimpered and squirmed in pain, a red stain appearing from the folds at her movements. The woman frowned, carefully extracting the child's left hand from the cloth. A red 'x' shone in the dim light on the back of the girl's small hand.
"Anton's parting gift to her," the man spoke in his soft voice. "By the time I'd gotten there, the only ones left were the fairly disorientated Death Eaters. From what I can guess, Anton ran off after she managed to do what her father did to Voldemort."
"So he's a spirit now?" the woman asked.
"Hardly," he answered. "If he were just a spirit, I wouldn't have had to fight those Death Eaters. They would have run without their new leader. They seemed pretty hell-bent on killing her even though he ran off."
"So Harry and Hermione are dead?" she inquired. "No wonder Dumbledore told me to wait for you here. He said he wants Harry's last Muggle relative to take care of her for a while. When she's old enough, we'll come and get her." The man smiled slightly, his fangs easily visible even in the muted light.
"I still can't see why on earth they made us her godparents," he chuckled. "I think the Weasly family was a little disappointed." They both suddenly jerked, drawing wands and looking in opposite directions. After a tense moment, they slowly put away their wands.
"We had better get moving, Dante," the woman murmured. "The Death Eaters are probably looking for you." He nodded in return before kissing her.
"Be careful, Seal," he said earnestly. She smirked and gave him another kiss.
"I'll be fine," she replied. "Get back to Hogwarts. Everyone is probably terrified that we've all been killed." Dante rolled his eyes with a smile before his body faded into black bats. The bats flew off in a cloud, vanishing over the horizon. Seal quickly strode up the drive of number 4, Privet Drive. She drew her wand again and tapped the doorknob.
"Alohomora!" she murmured. The lock clicked and she opened the door. The house was silent and still. Seal gently put the child on the chair near the door, conjuring a letter from thin air. It read "Mr. and Mrs. Dudley Dursley, 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey." Seal smiled and laid a kiss on the girl's forehead, carefully placing the letter on the chair as well.
"See you in a few years, Kendra," she chuckled. She slipped out of the house and took the shape of a wolf once more. Seal vanished into the night.
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Dudley Dursley was the first to wake that morning. He went down the stairs to acquire the morning paper, perhaps start brewing coffee for himself and his wife, when he saw the child on the chair. He snatched the letter and sank down on the steps, eyes wide. Dudley turned it over, staring for a few minutes at the Hogwarts official seal before opening it.
He read the letter three times before putting it down on the stair he sat on. Dudley stared at the baby girl on the chair, letting the gears in his head turn for a very long time. Thirty minutes later, his wife, Gaye, let out a sharp gasp when she came down the steps. She rushed over to the child, utterly terrified at the crimson 'x' on the girl's hand.
"Dudley, what's going on?" she questioned. "What's that letter?" She paused at seeing the envelope, recognizing the Hogwarts seal.
"My brother got those letters," she said softly. "He was a wizard, but you already knew that. What does it say now?" Dudley sighed, pushing back his short blond hair with a massive hand.
"Her name's Kendra," he replied. "My cousin Harry's kid. Harry's dead now, and they want us to take care of her."
"For how long?" Gaye asked, picking up the child and rocking her gently. "Harry Potter's daughter? She must be a witch." Dudley put one of his gigantic hands over his mouth, staring off into space as he thought ever harder.
"We had better keep her until they come to get her," he rumbled. "They'll probably come when she turns eleven. That's when that giant came for Harry." He thought for a bit more. "All right. She stays. She can be our kid for a while." Gaye smiled and kissed her husband on the cheek.
"I know you didn't care much for Harry," she said. "And I know you don't care much for magic and the like. I'm glad you're a bit more understanding now."
"I just don't want to get another pig tail," Dudley said gruffly. He did, however, tap Kendra on the nose with a small smile.
—Several years later—
"I'm home!" Kendra Potter called as she opened the door. She shuffled her feet on the mat in front of the door before stepping inside, removing the pieces of dirt lodged in her shoes.
"Hello, Kendra," Gaye said with a smile when Kendra walked into the kitchen. "I must have lost track of the time. Did you have a good time?" Kendra nodded with her own smile, a skateboard clutched tightly in her arms, her helmet dangling from her fingers. She was a bit dirty, but smiling brightly.
"Yep," she answered. "How was your day?" Gaye shook her head with a chuckle at the ten-year-old girl's usual question, turning in her chair and patting Kendra on the head.
"Fine as always, Kendra," she said. "Thank you for asking."
"Welcome!" Kendra laughed in return. Her laughter suddenly died as she looked away, brows furrowed. "I saw something kind of weird, though. It was a woman with gray hair. She was there one second, smiling at me, and then someone walked in front of her. A wolf was where she had been. Then another person walked in front of her and she was gone." Gaye paused, taken aback at Kendra's words.
"Did anyone else see her?" she asked. Kendra smiled innocently and shook her head.
"She was gone before I could ask anyone to look," she replied. Kendra excused herself to go clean the dirt off her hands and face, leaving Gaye in a quiet reverie. When Dudley arrived at the house a few hours later, returning from his job as a fitness trainer at a local gym, Gaye drew him aside to talk.
"I think it's finally time," she murmured. "They'll be coming to give her that letter soon."
"Then she's off to be a witch?" Dudley questioned no one in particular. "I didn't think it had been ten years already." He noticed Gaye's distressed expression, surprised at her teary eyes.
"I know she isn't our daughter," she said in a sad whisper. "I know that, but she's always been such a sweet girl. I kind of wish that she was a normal girl." Dudley sighed sadly, wrapping his arms around Gaye and rubbing her back gently.
"It's all right," he reassured her. "It's all right." In their hearts, they knew nothing was all right.
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On the morning of August twelfth, Kendra awoke with an unusual calm. She was often a bit overly energetic on summer mornings and would work it all out by skateboarding to her heart's desire. That morning, however, she found herself walking calmly down the stairs to the kitchen instead of leap-frogging four or five steps at a time.
Kendra walked into the kitchen and paused, staring at the two extra people that sat at the table. One was a white-haired man and the other was a gray-haired woman—the woman she had seen a few days earlier. Gaye and Dudley sat rather ashen-faced, but smiled at Kendra.
"Happy Birthday, Kendra," Gaye said, standing up and hugging Kendra tightly. "These people are going to be two of your professors next year. They're also your…your godparents."
"Hello," Kendra replied automatically. "What's a godparent?" The gray-haired woman laughed aloud at the innocent question.
"A godparent is a person that is chosen by your real parents to take care of you if something happens to them," the white-haired man explained. "Your parents chose Seal and I to be your godparents." Kendra easily made the connections in her mind and gave the two a hard look.
"I know," the woman chuckled. "We just pop up out of nowhere and say we're your guardians. We're a couple of nutters, right? It's all right. You can say it." Kendra giggled at the frank words.
"To put it quite simply, Kendra, other than the Dursleys here, none of us are normal," the man said in his soft, low voice. "I'm a vampire, Seal is half-werewolf, and you, dear girl, are a witch." The inevitable pause came. The adults waited anxiously for Kendra's expected reaction. They waited for her to run to her room, denying it fervently, for her to shriek in terror at the idea of a vampire and a werewolf. Kendra, however, merely stood there for a moment.
"Is that why I blew up my toast once?" she questioned. The gray-haired woman snorted and began to howl with laughter. Gaye chuckled, shaking her head at the memory.
"Yes, Kendra, I think that's why you blew up your toast," the white-haired man said with a smile. "Listen, we need you to go to London with Seal. You need to get your supplies before the year starts." Kendra nodded and scurried off to get ready.
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"How are you half-werewolf?" Kendra asked. Seal paused as they stepped out of the Leaky Cauldron pub. She had just drawn her wand from inside her Muggle jacket and held it a few inches from the brick wall.
"My mother was bitten just before she gave birth to me," she explained with a genial smile. "She went to a Muggle—normal people who can't use magic—hospital because she was seriously hurt. She had me and died three days afterwards. The only thing I know about her is her scent. I still remember it." Seal smiled rather nostalgically, leaning against the wall and closing her eyes as if to recall that scent.
Kendra waited for about two full minutes before she realized that Seal was not trying to remember something; she had fallen asleep on her feet. It was another minute before Kendra managed to stop laughing into her hands and shake Seal's arm.
"She smelled like roses," Seal said, continuing her thought as if she hadn't fallen asleep. Kendra giggled at her, somewhat amazed at what just happened. Her laughter cut off when Seal tapped a certain brick with her wand. The bricks began to move, twisting and turning until an arch was formed. Seal ushered her through before the bricks reverted to their usual positions.
"Diagon Alley," Seal murmured. "Everything you need is here. Come on. Oh, read this while we walk to Gringotts." She pulled a letter from her pocket, handing it to Kendra. The young girl took the parchment from the envelope and began to read the flowing script. By the time she had read through the letter and the list of supplies, Seal had guided her through the doors of a large white building.
"The wizard bank," Seal laughed, smiling at Kendra's obvious confusion. "We need to get you some money. Your parents probably left you more than enough." She continued on towards a counter, Kendra frozen at her words.
"You—you knew my parents?" she questioned, jogging to catch up. "What were they like? What did they do? What—what were their names?"
"Brave, kind, intelligent, and just a bit ridiculously reckless," Seal replied. "Your mother and father were both Aurors, and your father played Quidditch for England when he could. Hermione Granger, later Hermione Potter, and Harry Potter. Kendra Potter's vault, please." Kendra looked up at the counter and blinked at the peculiar creature looming over them.
"Her key?" the goblin hissed through sharp, clicking teeth. He stared down his long nose at Kendra. She unconsciously hid her left hand behind her back, uncomfortable about the highly visible 'x' on her hand.
"Here," Seal said sharply, dangling a small gold key in front of the goblin's nose. He shot a cold look at her before examining the key and calling over another goblin.
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"Goblins not your favorite magic creature, huh?" Seal asked gently when they walked back out into the sunlight. Kendra shook her head; still pale even after seeing the massive amount of gold Galleons, silver Sickles, and bronze Knuts her parents had left her.
"It's all right," the gray-haired woman murmured comfortingly. "Goblins have always been a bit…hmm, what's the word I'm looking for?"
"Scary?" Kendra supplied. Seal chuckled and pat Kendra on the head.
"Something like that," she said. "They've always been hyper-protective of gold, and with the Death Eaters and Anton on the loose, they've become more wary than ever. Don't worry about it." Seeing that Kendra was not reassured, Seal smiled and lifted the young girl onto her shoulders.
"I was so envious of the Dursleys," she explained as Kendra settled her hands into her coarse gray hair. "They got to give you rides like this all the time when you were just a little kid. At least I can do it once before you're too big to be embarrassed." She paused for a moment before heading towards a shop. "You're awfully light, Kendra. Did they treat you all right?"
"Of course!" Kendra said quickly. "I just skateboard a lot and I forgot to go home to eat sometimes." Seal smiled at her.
"You wont forget at Hogwarts," she spoke with a smile. "Well, unless someone gives you loads of homework, it's hard to miss a meal there. Best food I've ever had." She paused, stopping as if seeing something. It took Kendra a full minute to realize Seal was asleep on her feet again.
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"That's an interesting scar." Kendra glanced up from staring at the corner of the windowpane. A girl stood next to her on her left, standing very still on the other box. The two seamstress witches that Madam Malkin employed scurried around them, measuring them and pinning cloth where and when necessary. Kendra's hand twitched, but she urged herself to keep her arm from moving. She looked at the girl and paused for a few long moments. The girl's cheek was scarred severely and her messy hair was a light blue.
"I think yours beats mine," Kendra said with a faint smile. "My name's Kendra Potter. Who're you?" The girl paused; seeming a bit surprised that Kendra bothered to ask.
"Toorima Walker," she answered. "Rima for short. You said Kendra Potter? You're rumored to be…no, never mind. It's nice to meet you. You're getting everything for Hogwarts, aren't you?"
"Yep," Kendra replied with a smile, not picking up on Rima's stumbling. "Are you?" Still surprised that Kendra was speaking to her, Rima nodded. Moments later, the witches finished their robes and handed both girls their respective clothing.
"Where are you going now?" Kendra asked. Rima paused, halfway through drawing a wand from her pants pocket.
"I'm not sure," she answered. "I'm staying at the Leaky Cauldron until September first. I don't need to get anything else. Hold on. Kyuuten!" She laid the tip of the wand against the cloth. It glowed blue for a brief moment before fading back to its typical black.
"You already know spells?" Kendra asked in slight awe. Rima smiled at her, her expression suddenly softening. Kendra abruptly realized that Rima's blue hair fell over the left side of her face for a reason: a patch covered her eye.
"Some, yeah," Rima said, shrugging a bit with a faintly embarrassed smirk. "That one in particular is something I need to do with all my clothes. It makes the cloth change according to me."
"Why do you need to do that?" Kendra inquired innocently as they paid for their robes and walked out of the shop. Rima paused and glanced around with her quicksilver eye.
"Hold this, and I'll show you," she murmured. Kendra took her robes and wand and watched the other girl. Rima closed her eye and suddenly looked exactly like Kendra. Another moment passed, and she became a badger, statue of a sword, and herself in succession. She looked around nervously when she turned back into herself. Kendra was bubbling over with fascination and excitement.
"Wow!" she gasped. "That was incredible! How did you do that?" Rima, for the few minutes that Kendra had known her, never looked more uncomfortable.
"Well, well," a familiar voice said behind Rima. "A full-fledged, pureblood shapeshifter. You don't see many nowadays. Make a friend, Kendra?" Rima whirled about, throwing her arm out and stepping in front of Kendra. She reached back to take her wand from Kendra's arms, but a hand closed around her wrist. Seal smiled calmingly at the blue-haired girl who was a solid five foot five to Seal's five eight.
"Calm down," she murmured softly. "Neither you nor Kendra have anything to worry about from me. Your worries are unfounded with me because we have the same problem. My name's Seal, and I'm half-werewolf. You? What's your name?" Rima glanced over her shoulder at Kendra, gazing at the other girl's smile before loosening her muscles and lowering her arm.
"Toorima Walker," she answered. "Rima for short. Sorry for almost drawing on you. It's just that…well, metamorphmagi are less discriminated against because all they do is change their physical features. Shapeshifters though…we're barely classified as magic-users—barely classified as humans. The Ministry puts us in the same boat as vampires and werewolves."
"Then you're no different than anyone else to me," Kendra spoke up. "You're something better. You're my friend." Rima and Seal both turned to look in surprise at the girl. Kendra chuckled, closing her green eyes in vague embarrassment.
"Um, isn't that the man from this morning?" she questioned, pointing at the swiftly advancing figure. The white-haired man hurried through the crowd, running and dodging between the witches and wizards.
"Dante?" Seal asked when the man stopped in front of them. "What are you doing here?"
"That doesn't matter," the man, Dante, hissed. "Get her to the nearest fire, now! Get her to Hogwarts as soon as you can!" Seal's gold eyes narrowed at his words, but she nodded and turned to Kendra.
"We need to go," she murmured. "Nice meeting you, Rima. Stay safe."
"See you at the start of term," Kendra said quickly, handing Rima back her belongings before Seal and Dante hurried her away. Rima watched them go with a faint, content smile. It was the first smile she had ever shown.
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Kendra stared up at the slowly rotating ceiling above her, slightly sick to her stomach. She had never realized one could travel through fireplaces, much less imagined that there was a specialized powder to incorporate the magic.
"Dante, you said you would meet us back here, not in the middle of Diagon Alley. What in the hell is going on?" Kendra managed to move her head to look blearily up at her godparents. Dante's frown seemed to speak volumes to Seal and she blanched.
"The Death Eaters?" she asked. Dante nodded, much to Seal's visible distress. Kendra closed her eyes to stop the whirling room and to reset the gears in her head. She thought about what Seal had just asked, the words "Death Eaters" ringing in her ears. Something about those words dredged up a latent worry in her heart. Her eyes snapped open and she struggled to her unsure feet.
"What happened to Dudley and Gaye?" she demanded. "What did the Death Eaters do?" Seal looked away, unable to answer. Dante turned to her, red eyes strangely soft.
"Kendra, I'm sorry," he murmured. "They were killed." Kendra's already unsteady legs buckled as the news struck her. She fell to her knees, staring in shock at the floor. She couldn't move.
—to be continued—