Chapter Ten
Christmas at the Wand Shop
December came very cold. The next day, December 1st, came with a drastic climate drop from the previous day. A majority of the students came down with colds, but Madam Treaten, using a potion she learned from her mother, was able to cure it but left the drinker with steam coming out their ears.
Terry, Travis, Alia, and the rest of their friends had a very large enchanted snowball fight against each other, boys against girls. Ellistris Kanteroff was nearly buried in snow by Jim, but the combined forces of Alia, Natasha, Marigold, Hope Livecombe, Ellistris, and Michelle Bulkstrand were able to knock Terry, Travis, Gary, Peragu, Walt, Antony, Davis, Jim, and Benjamin. Alia had fun gloating about this for weeks to come.
In the second week, Professor Granger took names of students who would be staying for Christmas. Terry didn't sign. Neither did Travis or Alia. Terry had receive a letter from his mother.
Dear Terry,
I wanted to write you to tell you that your father and I are expecting you home for Christmas. He and I have a surprise for you when you get here. Don't pack up too many belonging, because you'd be back in five weeks. You're father is okay, but he is in a cast because he fell off a ladder, trying to get a wand on a top shelf. He'll be alright, but he'll be hobbling around for about a week. Take care of yourself
Mum
"My mother told me to come home too," said Alia. "My Aunt Regina is coming from Atlanta." They were enjoying the last bit of time together as best they could by performing some more dueling practice.
Alia had gotten very good at the Flipping Jinx. Travis had started only a week ago and quickly adapted a Perplexing Hex as his shtick. Terry thoroughly enjoyed using the Spinning Hex, causing Alia or Travis to spin uncontrollably, obscuring their aim.
Gary soon wondered where they were at hours at a time, and followed them to their favorite practice room. Once he learned what they were doing, shockingly, offered to help them. He had taken a more advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts, and knew more spells.
He first taught them how to perfect the Disarming Charm. He was able to teach Travis quite a bit, and Travis disarmed Alia nine times. In Alia and Travis' first duel, Travis had Alia wandless and thinking she was Doris Derangford because of the Perplexing Hex he had used.
"I want to practice when I get home!" said Travis. "My parents would be interested."
"I wanted to do that too," said Gary. "First off, you would get a nice letter from the Improper Use of Magic Office. Secondly, mum and dad aren't interested."
"You all packed?" asked Alia the second Saturday of the month; the last day they would be at Hogwarts before the train.
"No," said Travis. "I can't find my second pair of robes." He was digging through his trunk, throwing things willy-nilly all over the place.
"You should have packed yesterday, like us," said Terry. "I have everything packed already. I still have to find a way to get Midnight into her cage without getting mauled." He glanced over at a gray bundle was staring at him piercingly.
The next day, Terry, Travis, and Alia put their luggage by the large oak doors and went into the great hall for breakfast. The Hall was decked out in a dozen splendid pine trees covered in magical crystal frost and draped in holly. Large garlands with mistletoe and ivy were streamed across the enchanted magical endless ceiling, where dry, warm, bewitched snow was falling.
Terry and his friends sat down and helped themselves to bacon and eggs.
"You know," said Gary, "the decorations are better on Christmas day. I stayed here for Christmas last year. Decorations, food, and crackers were great! I wish I was staying, but Travis and I are going to go see our Grandma Vieille in Sheffield."
At around ten o'clock, the students who were going home lined up at the gates flanked by two winged boar statues. Near two hundred were all in a large mob, and eventually fifty carriages pulled up and in fours and fives, the students climbed into the carriages.
Terry, Travis, and Alia shared a carriage with Gary and Naria Webster, who both sat together. Travis sniggered most of the way down to the train station in the village. They got out when they reached the village and waited some more for the train. It pulled in at ten thirty and the students climbed on and found a good compartment.
Terry, Travis, and Alia found a compartment near the middle of the train and Natasha Skile joined them since there weren't any other good seats. They played Exploding Snap and Wizard Chess, and were glad that Marigold wasn't there, when they started doing impressions of some of the teachers and notable students, including Marigold.
"Skile, if you could go three times around the stadium, " imitated Natasha. "Clavereaux, if you could do a hand stand on your broom. Norron, if you could fall from your broom and see if it will catch you. Ollivander, if you could spit shine my shoes. Everyone clear?"
Just then, Marigold came in. Natasha froze. Terry and Travis stopped laughing. Alia pretended to drop her wand and went to retrieve it, but never came back up.
"Hello, everyone!" said Marigold. She obviously didn't hear what they had just said. "Listen, if you could buy Quidditch Through the Ages over the holidays and read it as best you can. There are some moves in there I want to practice. Everyone clear?"
"S –- sure," said Natasha. Travis started sniggering again.
"Right," said Marigold. "I need to go back to my compartment. Have a good Christmas!"
Marigold left the compartment. Terry, Travis, Alia, and Natasha all breathed again. They stuck to making fun of teachers from that point on, for fear that who ever they were impersonating would barge in as Marigold just had.
Day turned to evening and an announcement come over the speaker telling them they would be at King's Cross in five minutes, and to change into their Muggle clothes.
Alia and Natasha went into the aisle as Terry and Travis changed, and they did the same when the girls changed. Alia was wearing her sunflower dress and her sun hat and Natasha had a wooly winter cap, a navy jacket, and some jeans on.
Five minutes later, they were stepping off the train onto the dim dusk on platform nine and three-quarters. It was dim and snowy, just how Terry liked his winters. They picked up their luggage, found a trolley for each of them, and went to the barrier between platforms nine and ten. A furtive-looking old wizard let them go through in twos and threes, as to prevent Muggles seeing two hundred teenagers come flying out of nowhere.
Once back in the Muggle World, Terry spotted his parents immediately. His father was back in his dotted shirt, striped blazer, green pants, and plaid tie. His mother was in a pink evening dress. They waved and he waved back.
Alia saw her parents (two very thin people who had a better since of Muggle fashion), said "Merry Christmas!" to Terry and Travis, and darted off to hug her mother.
Travis saw his parents not long after and went to join them. Terry then went over to his parents.
"Hello, sweetheart!" exclaimed his mother. She hugged him. "Have a good term?"
"Yeah, it was great," said Terry. He grinned at them. He noticed that his mother and father were on pins and needles. "What's up?"
"We've got a surprise for you at home," said Mr Ollivander, positively glowing.
"You'll love it, Terry," said his mother.
Terry gave them worried glances, but went along with it. He followed them with his trolley to a stop sign, where Mr and Mrs Ollivander stopped abruptly.
"We're meeting someone here," said Mr Ollivander. "He's got some Floo powder we can borrow." Just then, a man in a muddy yellow raincoat walked up to them.
"Evening, Magnus!" said the man.
"Alright there, Phil?" asked Mr Ollivander. They obviously knew each other.
"Fine as I'll ever be," replied the man. "Ah! Gloria! Nice to see you! And, young Terry. How was term?"
"Fine," said Terry. He felt odd talking to a man he didn't know and acting like they knew the other.
"Terry, this is Mr Milkswurth. He works at the Department of Magical Transportation at the Ministry of Magic. He is kind enough to escort us to a restaurant that is wizard friendly and has a fireplace in the back."
"Oh –- hello," said Terry, still feeling a bit awkward.
"Well, let's get started," said Mr Milkswurth.
"Where is the restaurant, Phil?" asked Mr Ollivander. He glanced around, still anxious to get Terry home and show him the surprise.
"Just there," said Mr Milkswurth. He pointed to a tiny café with pink drawn back checkered curtains in every window. They walked to the café and opened the door. As they entered, a bell dinged. The restaurant spelled of fresh brewed coffee and the floor matched the curtains.
A woman came out of a back room with puffed up blonde hair and the same pattern as the floor and curtains on her dress. She was smacking as she chewed gum and her lower jaw resembled the chewing motion of a cow. Her name tag read Flo.
"Whaddya want?" she asked with a cynical glance at them. Terry noticed her nails were very long and could only be matched in length by her eyelashes.
"Yes, we'd like to use your fireplace," said Mr Milkswurth with a highly implying look.
"Oh! Yous must be the Ollivander party! Imagine. Yous all wizards. Yous fake being Muggles well," she had smiled. "Except for you," she added looking at Mr Ollivander.
She reached into her dress pocket and pulled out a wand. "I was saying to my boyfriend, Biff, the other day," began the woman as she made flicks with her wand at the curtains and they drew closed, "he needs to actually see a Muggle, because, he doesn't really knows hows they dress. He once went to this Muggle party with these real sophisticated Muggles, and he went dressed in a pair of overalls and a button down shirt! Ain't that the funniest thing!"
Mr Milkswurth looked annoyed. "Hilarious," he said flatly. "Look, can we use the fireplace or not?"
"Oh! Touchy, touchy!" said the woman. "Alright! If yous are all gonna be impatient, I guess yous can go now."
She led them to a back room then spells oddly of weed killer. There was a run down fireplace in the wall across from them. Mr Milkswurth pulled out a leather pouch from out of his rain coat and opened it. He offered it to Mrs Ollivander, who drew out her wand, murmured "Incendio!" and blue fire appeared in the grate.
Mrs Ollivander grabbed a handful of some powder out of the pouch, handed the pouch to her husband, and threw the powder onto the flames which turned emerald. She stepped in and said "Number 27, Diagon Alley!" The green flames shot up, covering Mrs Ollivander. In an instant, she was gone.
Mr Ollivander offered the bag to Terry next. The blue flames were still crackling and he threw the powder on them and turned them the green color again. He stepped in and felt the warmth of the green flames.
"Number 27, Diagon Alley!" he said. The green flames surrounded him, blocked his father and Mr Milkswurth from sight, and he felt himself whizzing upward. He was flying at top speed. He saw into some wizarding houses as he past them. A woman was charming a pot to make it cook food itself –- whoosh! –- Five old wizards where playing cards –- whoosh! –- A house elf leapt back as it found laundry on the floor –- THUD!
Terry fell forward into his kitchen and almost face planted against the hard hearth. He looked up to see his mother brushing dirt off her dress.
Terry got up and moved out of the way. His father would be arriving any moment and he didn't want to be hit. He went to their wooden kitchen table and sat on a wooden stool. Two seconds later, Mr Ollivander arrived with Terry's belongings. Midnight was shocked. She stared blankly out of her cage.
"Right, then," grunted Mr Ollivander, putting down Terry's truck and letting Midnight out. "Time for that surprise!" He said that rather loudly as he and Terry were just feet from each other. But Terry soon knew why he had been speaking so loudly.
Tall and slender, a man walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. He was wearing a green T-shirt, a denim vest, a necklace with a rusted old Knut dangling from it, and jeans. He had ovally glasses he wore at the end of his nose and is colored crimson hair was combed back into a tiny ponytail in the back.
"Need help, father?" asked the man. Terry hadn't seen him for three Years, but there is some odd connection that all siblings have, that you can be apart for fifty Years, and still be able to recognizable to the other. Terry's older brother, Fraton, had come to stay for Christmas.
"Fraton!" cried Terry. "What are you –- "
"I was promoted at St. Mungo's," said Fraton "I have an easier work schedule now so I can come and visit more often, little bro. Anyway, need help?"
"No, Fraton. I think I just about got it," said Mr Ollivander sitting down at the table too. Mrs Ollivander swept back in, once again dressed in her robes, carrying four tankards of butterbeer. She set a butterbeer down in front of each person and then sat down and began to drink her own.
"So, Terry, how're you enjoying that broom I sent you?" asked Fraton taking a sip of his butterbeer.
Mrs Ollivander almost spat out what she had just drank. She gulped hard.
"Fraton, you didn't!" said Mrs Ollivander.
"I did! Is there something wrong with that?" asked Fraton. He was more laid back than his parents.
"It's just –- it's rather expensive, isn't it?" asked Mrs Ollivander. "I hope you didn't get him anything too fancy."
"I bought him a Zephryn," said Fraton. "I always wanted one back when they still made Zephryn Nines, so I thought Terry would like a Zephryn Twenty-Seven."
"Honey, I'm not saying it wasn't a nice gesture, but where did you get the –- "
"I told you," said Fraton. "I got a promotion at work. I get loads more now. This month I raked in nine hundred and fifty Galleons. I plan on going to go on holiday for a while now I have all this loot." He put his hands behind his head and leaned back so that only two of the chair's legs were touching the ground.
"Well, alright," said Mrs Ollivander. "Since Terry is on the team...he can keep it."
"So, you never did answer my question, Terry. How do you like it?" asked Fraton.
"It's great. I won my first match on it," Terry told them.
Mr and Mrs Ollivander both looked very impressed.
"Way to go, Terry!" said Mr Ollivander, leaning over to clasp Terry's shoulder. Fraton had put all his chair legs down and shook Terry's hand.
"That's wonderful, Terry! What house were you up against?" asked Mrs Ollivander.
"Hufflepuff," said Terry. "My friends are on the team too."
"That's really great," said Fraton. "I never found out. What house are you in?" asked Fraton.
"My friends and I made it into Ravenclaw," said Terry.
"Same house that I was in when I was at Hogwarts," said Mr Ollivander. "You were in Hufflepuff, weren't you, dear?" Mr Ollivander asked to Mrs Ollivander.
"Yes. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy," said Mrs Ollivander with a smile.
"I was a Gryffindor," said Fraton. "I would have had to write to Potter if the hat had put you in Slytherin. Had any run-ins with the Slytherin folk?"
"Only a few," said Terry. He was thinking back to all the times Ethilina Malfoy had tried to trick, provoke, tease, banter, curse, and insult he, Travis, and Alia.
Terry had been requested to tell his family all about the last three months at Hogwarts. He told them about his teachers. He told them about Quidditch. Then, he moved into darker subjects. Like his confrontation with the cloaked figure. He also told them about how the seventh floor was destroyed on Halloween.
"Are you serious?" asked his mother. "Has Professor Potter done anything."
"I don't know if they is anything he really can do," said Mr Ollivander. "You can't really trace a cloaked figure. There probably weren't any witnesses in the corridor when it was destroyed."
"I'm just glad you're alright, Terry. I don't know what would have happened if that cloaked figure had hurt you too bad," said Mrs Ollivander. She looked very worried.
"Did anything like this happened when your sister taught at Hogwarts?" asked Mr Ollivander. Mrs Ollivander thought for a moment.
"There was that incident with that stone that Albus Dumbledore was hiding. A Year after that, students were being attacked. A murderer was on the loose a Year later. A boy died the Year following. Then this horrible woman came and taught at the school and was attacked by centaurs. She and my sister didn't get along too well."
"I guess," said Fraton standing up, "you just can't go to Hogwarts without weird things happening. I'm hungry, mum. What's for dinner?"
"Chicken legs," said Mrs Ollivander, standing up too and going over to the stove while Fraton sat back down. She brought back over four plates and a large dish of grilled chicken legs. She placed two or three legs on each plate and also used a Summoning Charm to make a bowl of potatoes fly over to her. She spooned large globs of mashed potatoes onto the plates and distributed the plates between her family.
"Tuck in!" said Mrs Ollivander. She sat down and began to eat.
During the duration of dinner, the Ollivanders moved on to more pleasant subjects. Terry told more about Alia and Travis, Fraton told a story about a patient he had had recently had who hit himself in the eye with a Curling Charm while he was getting ready for a funeral. Mr Ollivander told them business what booming and Mrs Ollivander said that Terry's aunt had found work since she was fired three Years ago.
After dinner (and a little dessert), Fraton and Terry played Wizard Chess while Mr Ollivander read the Evening Prophet and Mrs Ollivander knitted a large blue and grey scarf.
"Checkmate," said Terry. One of his pawns had jumped on the back of Fraton's king and was wrestling him to the ground.
"It's not over yet, bro!" said Fraton. "Come on! He's only a pawn! Take him down!"
All of Terry's pieces had dived on the struggling pair and Fraton's king collapsed.
"You haven't a chance of coming back now, Fraton. Admit it! You lost," said Terry.
"I think its high time you all went to bed," said Mr Ollivander, putting the Evening Prophet and looking at them. He got up himself and stretched. Mrs Ollivander knitted herself to a stopping point and got up to. Terry and Fraton cleaned up the remains of the chess pieces, Fraton used a Repairing Spell to fix them, and they stood up.
"I'm going to go to bed," said Fraton. "See everyone in the morning!" Fraton climbed the stairs to the upstairs bedrooms. Terry heard a door close upstairs.
He said goodnight to his parents and went upstairs and went into his old room. His father had brought his luggage up and Midnight was sleeping on Terry's bed. He put his wand on his bed side table, and turned on an old fashioned oil lamp. He went and sat back at his bay window. Midnight scurried across the dusty wooden floor to join him.
It was hard to believe that about five months ago, he had sat here, friendless and bored, and now, two weeks before Christmas, and he had more friends currently than he had ever had in his life.
His brother had come just to see him. His parents were finally proud of him. He used to think (you came into the story after this) that he would never amount to anything. He would just stay at the wand shop for the rest of his life, and watch witches and wizards his age be qualified wizards, and he would stuck up in his room.
He got up and carried Midnight to his bed. He set her down and he climbed in. He leaned over and turned off the lamp and made himself more comfortable in the bed. He rolled over onto his side and fell asleep.
In a week and a half, Terry, Mr Ollivander, and Fraton all headed down the snowy street of Diagon Alley, away from the Leaky Cauldron, to the furthest part of the two strings of wizarding shops. At the very end of Diagon Alley there is a tiny wood full of pine trees. Terry and Fraton liked to look into all the shops with all the different magical objects.
When they reached the wood, Mr Ollivander let Terry and Fraton loose to find the perfect Christmas tree. Fraton found one that came up to his waist but was vetoed by Mr Ollivander. Terry found one that was twelve feet tall and six feet around. Terry was shot down too. But, both Terry and Fraton found a tree about eight feet tall and perfectly shaped and groomed.
With a simple Severing Spell, the tree came crashing down. Mr Ollivander and Fraton carried it back to the wand shop. Mrs Ollivander had gone up to the attic and found six boxes of Christmas decorations that the Ollivanders had owned since Fraton was born. Mr Ollivander and Fraton erected the tree in the actual shop.
Terry and Fraton were left to their own devises to decorate the tree. Mr and Mrs Ollivander went over to Madam Malkin's shop to visit and chat.
Fraton conjured up magical, non-popping, light filled, multi-colored bubbles that Terry draped on the trees. After a run to the Magical Menagerie, they were able to conjure more bubbles and put live fairies in them. Terry dug into one of the boxes and found a large collection of candles. Fraton lit them with neutral temperature blue, red, yellow, and silver fire and placed them strategically on the tree. When the body of the tree was glowing with all sorts of colors, Fraton magicked a tiny star, not a five point star, an actual tiny star, and hovered it to the top of the tree.
When Mr and Mrs Ollivander returned, they were surprised to find the tree already decorated and that it was decorated so well. Mrs Ollivander put on a pot of tea and as evening drew closer, Fraton and Terry went for a stroll around Diagon Alley.
They noticed all the stores around them were closing as they passed a second-hand clothes store, a restaurant, and the office where the Daily Prophet. They eventually stumbled on Weasley Wizard Wheezes: Jokes of All Kinds. Two red-headed men who were obviously twin brothers where cleaning up and counting the days profits.
"Shall we go in?" asked Fraton, twitching his head toward the shop. A mischievous smile playing across his face
"Why not?" asked Terry, adopting the same smile. That type of smile can only be achieved two ways: play more than fifty practical jokes (how the Weasley twins attained it) and genetics (how Fraton and Terry came to share it).
A tiny bell dinged as Fraton and Terry entered, like most shops at Diagon Alley do.
"Ah, it's are best customer!" said one of the men. A large "G" printed on a pointed wizards hat perched diagonally on his red hair. His robes were an electrifying green and a purple vest rested on top of it.
"Fraton! Who are you?" asked the second man. His robes and vest had switched colors, his hat was set in the other direction, and he had a "F" on his hat.
"I'm doing well, gents. How's business," asked Fraton.
"Booming as usual," said the second man.
"We just invented Optical Obstacles so kids have nearly torn the place apart," said the first man.
"What are Optical Obstacles?" asked Fraton.
The first man reached behind the counter and pulled out a pair of innocent looking glasses.
"This joke only works on people with glasses. These glasses, though look ordinary –- " said the first man
"–-Really are a load of laughs. You simply switch these glasses for the real ones –- " said the second man.
"–-And when they put the glasses on, they can't see things that have been charmed to be obstacles. The person wearing the glasses will either trip over –- "
"–-Or run into –-"
"–-What ever's in their way. It makes them look like a total git," ended the first man. Fraton took his glasses off and cleaned them nervously on his shirt.
"Well, I'll –- uh –- I'll keep that in mind, George," said Fraton, putting his glasses on again.
"Who's this?" asked the second man, indicating Terry.
"Oh! This is my younger brother, Terry. He just started at Hogwarts"
"Ah, Hogwarts," said the second man.
"Good times, eh, Fred?" asked the man called George Weasley.
"I loved it there," said George's brother, Fred. "Two of our nephews go there, don't they, George?"
"Yes, they do," said George. "Maybe you know them, Terry. Cole Weasley and Peragu Paleface?"
Both the names rang a bell. "Yeah. I know Cole as an acquaintance. Peragu has so far thrown me two different parties," explained Terry. "Peragu's trying to outdo you two."
"Is he now?" asked George. His face was in interested surprise.
"I knew we shouldn't have told him about the twenty parties we threw," said Fred.
"Went to his head, it did," said George. He sighed.
"At least he didn't turn out like Percy, eh, George?" said Fred, elbowing George. "Cornelius Fudge's assistant and now he's Plura Pulicidaus'. He's a ruddy suck up."
"Out of seven children, he has to go off and be important and leave us in the dust. Poor Ginny has been so upset. She even wrote a song to tell Percy how much of a scum bucket he is."
Terry awoke Christmas morning to the smell of pine nettles, baking ham, and holly. He crept downstairs, still in his pajamas, with his shadow-like cat companion close behind him to find the Christmas tree completely surrounded by large, colorful, wrapped boxes with different patterned bows and ribbons.
"Merry Christmas!" said his mother when she had spotted him. "Have a spot of breakfast, then we can all open presents."
Fraton came down the stairs. He looked wide awake and was full of energy.
"Morning, all!" said Fraton with enthusiasm. "Time for gifts?"
"No, honey. We're going to eat first. Just sit down at the table and I'll make you a plate," said Mrs Ollivander.
Fraton sat down and bade Terry a good morning. He pulled out his wand and sort of flicked it. Christmas carols erupted from Fraton's wand and filled the entire house with holiday cheer. "What's Christmas without music?" asked Fraton, tucking into his bacon and eggs.
Mr Ollivander came in from the shop, looking tired but cheerful.
"Just had a tricky customer," he sat down next to Fraton. "Some kid broke his wand trying to curse his mother when she bought him a pair of socks for Christmas. The curse didn't work so he threw his wand at her and missed. It the wall and snapped in half. I tell you, I know plenty of people that would love a pair of socks for Christmas!"
"Do you?" asked Mrs Ollivander skeptically. "How many?"
"Well –- er –- really, only one. But he would go crazy if you were to give him the socks," said Mr Ollivander.
The Ollivanders whipped through breakfast and were helped along by the youngest two of the bunch rushing their parents to finish up to get to opening presents quicker. Eventually, Mr and Mrs Ollivander finished their food and Terry and Fraton made an unceremonious beeline to the Christmas tree.
Terry found six gifts with his name on them. The first was from his parents. They had given him a spell book called Charms to Live By: 101 Most Commonly Used Charms. Fraton, Travis, and Alia had all given him a gigantic stock of sweets and candies to last him three terms. From his Aunt Sibyl, he received another book called The Worst and Frightening Wizarding Futures. His last gift under the tree was from his cousin Valizzia and his Grandmother. They had given him something called a Cogitater. It was a devise that looked like a coin. You put in your pocket and it was supposed to help you figure out things better.
"I don't believe that's true," said Mrs Ollivander. "No devise can make people smarter."
"You'd be surprised, mum," said Fraton. "Grandma gave me one of those when I started Hogwarts. I swear, I wouldn't have gotten those ten O.W.L.s without it in my pocket."
"Terry!" said Mr Ollivander when he opened his gift from Terry. "You didn't have to do this!"
Terry had bought his father a wireless. It of course was different from a Muggle one, as it catered to the wizarding community exclusively.
"I had too," said Terry. "All the times I had to work in the shop with no music. I don't know how you withstand it," joked Terry.
"Thank you," said Mr Ollivander.
Terry had given a gift to his mother too. A spell book called Household Charms: Take Over Your Home or Flat with Magic by Aboding Hartford. Fraton had gotten a t-shirt with the words "the Weird Sisters" printed on it. Terry also threw in some Optical Obstacles. He had sent Fraton's owl, Barer, with sweets to his friends. Travis had also received from Terry a book called Bowled Over by Beaters. Alia, along side the candy, had been sent a signed poster of the Sweetwater All-Stars he had found at Quality Quidditch Supplies. His mother picked out the gift for Aunt Sibyll and Valizzia and just put everyone's name on it.
Fraton was now wearing his Weird Sisters shirt and tripped over bricks that Terry had also purchased from the Weasley twins for his own enjoyment. Mr Ollivander was listening to a songs made by an orchestra called "The Eighteenth Wizarding Symphony of Wales." Mrs Ollivander had learned the Auto-Tasking Charm and had a broom sweep up all the wrappings while she listened to the wireless with her husband.
Terry hadn't had Christmas with the entire family in about seven Years. Fraton had moved into his own house when he graduated Hogwarts and really hadn't come to visit sense then. Now, he and Terry were having the times of their lives. To Terry, it seemed a pity that Fraton didn't come to visit that often.
"Are you all packed, Terry?"
It was day before Terry was due to return back to Hogwarts for the next term. All his stuff had been accumulated over a span of a week. His wand, Christmas presents, the few pairs of clothes he packed, some of his books (which included Quidditch Through the Ages to get Marigold off his back), a pack of cards, and Midnight were all strewn over his bed while his trunk was sitting alone in a corner of his room.
"Yes, mum!" Terry shouted back down the stairs. "Just about!" He picked up all of his belongings, besides Midnight, and crammed them into the trunk. For being an unorganized mess, it fit better then Terry thought it would. He closed the trunk and went downstairs.
Mrs Ollivander was making a big dinner in honor of Terry leaving. Midnight ran after him when had left his room and caught up with him when he was sitting down. He stared up at him expectantly. She was starting to get used to eating table scraps.
Midnight got her wish when Mrs Ollivander placed food on Terry's plate and he took a bit of potato and a tiny sliver of meat and placed it on the ground for Midnight to devour.
Terry, Mr Ollivander, Mrs Ollivander, and Fraton all joked, teased, chatted, and ate with each other, just having fun. When a large pudding was put on the table, Terry and Fraton nearly dove at it, trying to have at it first.
After diner, Mr Ollivander, Terry, and Fraton decided to play Exploding Snap (Mrs Ollivander didn't like the noises so she sat and continued to knit). Fraton won five out of eight times, until Terry found him with his wand up his sleeve and chased him around the house, throwing the cards at him, which exploded when they hit something.
Terry went to bed with only one thought: "Travis and Alia must meet Fraton one day.."
Since Mr Milkswurth had left them with Floo power, the Ollivanders wouldn't have to walk to Kings Cross like they had done the previous occasion. They took the Floo powder back to the restaurant with the talkative waitress, Flo.
Across the street, they went and grabbed a trolley for Midnight's cage and Terry's trunk. They were walking from platform eight to platform nine when a familiar voice caught Terry's attention.
"Terry! Oh, Terry! Over here!"
Terry turned to see Alia pushing her trolley at a run to catch up with him.
"Hi, Alia," said Terry. "How was your holiday?"
"I'll tell you on the train. I want you to meet my parents." Alia made a beckoning motion with her hand and Mr and Mrs Clavereaux came over.
They were both tall and thin. Mr Clavereaux had neatly combed brown hair and a mustache. Mrs Clavereaux was blonde, like Alia, but it was lacking the ringlets that were so prominent in Alia's appearance.
Terry was introduced and shook hands with Alia's parents while Terry's parents stood on the sidelines.
"Alia," said Terry, "these are my parents."
"Pleased to meet you," said Alia outstretching her hand. Terry's parents took it and shook it.
"And this my older brother, Fraton," said Terry.
Fraton shook Alia's hand like his parents and shot sly looks over his glasses at Terry. Terry noticed that when Alia went over to say goodbye to her parents, Fraton was mouthing "Terry's got a girlfriend. Terry's got a girlfriend." Terry stared angrily at Fraton who started laughing and Terry almost charged at him, but he thought it he would make too much of a scene.
Terry and Alia went through the barrier together and appeared on platform nine and three-quarters. Their parents and Fraton came after them with their luggage. They put it in the pile that had formed the last time Terry had rode the train to Hogwarts, he and Alia got on the train, found a compartment, and stuck their heads out the window to say goodbye to their parents.
"Be good," said Mrs Ollivander, reaching up to hug Terry. "Write me when you get a chance."
"Have a good term, son," said Mr Ollivander.
"Have fun with Alia!" said Fraton.
"Fraton, shut up!" yelled Terry.
"Only joking, bro," said Fraton with a laugh. "Listen, the train doesn't leave for a while. Can you come out here? I have something I want to show you."
Terry opened the sliding glass door of his compartment and came outside. Fraton ushered him to a column and stepped them both behind it. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a shiny, gelatinous, oval like thing with two oval openings and a protruding bump in the middle.
"Terry, this is a Masker," said Fraton. Terry saw now that the two openings were eye holds and the bump was a nose. The blob-like thing Fraton was holding, was a mask. "If you press it to your face, you will be able to masquerade as anyone. It actually changes your physical appearance. I was going to give it to you on Christmas, but I don't think mum and dad would approve. So, Merry Belated Christmas!" He thrust the Masker at Terry.
"Go ahead!" said Fraton once Terry had taken it. "Try it out!"
Terry slowly moved the Masker to his face, and as its cold body felt his skin, it magically grabbed to his face. Terry then, with a sudden inspiration, thought of the first name that popped into his head.
He started to grow taller, taller, and taller still, until he was about six feet tall. His hair was starting to be pulled back and started to turn scarlet. The visions in front of him started to get blurry and faded...his eye sight was going. After about a minute or so, Fraton chuckled. Terry knew now that he was the spitting image of Fraton. He could look directly into Fraton's eyes; they were the same height.
Terry reached up to his face and peeled the Masker off of him. His hair turned gold and started to retreat back to its normal curtain-like position. He shrank and now only came up to Fraton's shoulder. All the things that he saw sharpened and were now easier to identify.
"That –- was wicked!" exclaimed Terry. "I was –- I turned into –- and you and I were –- THAT WAS WICKED!"
"I thought you would like it," said Fraton. "Now, get along. Use it to your advantage, but don't let mum and dad find it! Okay?"
"Alright," said Terry. "Thanks, Fraton. This is really cool. Will I see you soon?"
"I would guess so," said Fraton casually, putting his hands into his pockets.
"Well, see ya, Fraton," said Terry.
"See you!"
Terry stepped out of the column and got back into the train. He went into his compartment with Alia, and now Travis had found them.
"Hey, Terry! Thanks for the book and the candy," said Travis first thing.
"Hey. Thanks for the candy, too. And you too, Alia," said Terry. "I still have more than half. Fraton got me some candy too. And...something else..."
Terry told them about his new possession. It had put it in his pocket when he had finished talking to Fraton and he took it out again. He put it on his face, and his hair shortened, turned black, he grew paler and freckled, and his eyes turned brown. Now, he was Travis' double.
"Weird," said Travis, astonished, looking at his new mirror of a friend. "And your brother gave this to you?"
Terry had turned back and had put the Masker aside. "He told me to use it to my advantage."
"Well, you know what this means?" asked Travis, slyly. "You're going to give Peragu a run for his money."
"Yes, you will, Terry," said Alia. "Oh! Guess what I got for Christmas from my Uncle Castello." She reached into a tiny house like box and pulled out a small gold winged ball. Terry thought it was a Golden Snitch, but then he noticed, it had feathers and red, jewel like eyes, and a beak.
"Alia? Is that –- ?" started Terry.
"A Snidget!" exclaimed Alia. "My Uncle Castello owns a Snidget reservation. He was able to breed them back from being endangered. He also gave them strengthening potions and foods that they are not so fragile. He's had them thriving for about two Years now and he let me have one. I've named him Flick."
The Snidget leapt into the air and started to fly around the compartment in sudden lurches and twitches to the sides.
"I like him," said Travis. The Snidget had landed on his shoulder.
"I read a book that said that Snidgets were illegal to own," said Terry. "Are you sure it's safe to own it?"
"Flick's a he, not an it. And I did have so sign quite a few things and my parents had to pay quite a bit. But, Uncle Castello gave me the strongest one he had to I think Flick'll be okay."
"I don't know, Alia," said Terry. "It might be a little dodgy."
"I trust my uncle, Terry. You should too."
"Well –- It's just –- I don't want the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures coming down hard on you!"
"They aren't," said Alia calmly. "Uncle Castello worked it out with a friend at the Ministry. It's all fine. The deal has been checked, double checked, and triple checked. It has to stay in a special home that my dad made, it has to eat a special food that it mailed to me in a tiny package weekly, it has certain sleeping hours, I can only take him outside after a nap, and all this stuff to keep him safe. I intent to keep him. It's not your decision."
"It's just, Alia, I don't think Midnight would agree with it," said Terry.
"Ahem?" said Alia, indicating the corner of the compartment. Midnight and the Flick were sleeping, Flick lying between the curled up Midnight's legs.
"Well, I just..." Flick woke up and flew over to Terry. It landed on his head and started making a tiny peeping sound. "Actually," smiling for the first time in the conversation, "I think he may grow on me."
Around eight in the evening, the train pulled into Hogsmeade station. Terry, Travis, and Alia stepped down off the train and onto platform one (the only one). They and the other students returning from their holidays walked to the furthest part of the village. The fifty horseless carriages came into sight and four by four, the students climbed in.
Once again, Natasha, who had spent her holiday in the Carribean and was now very tan, joined them in their carriage. Alia let Flick out of his house again and Natasha had fun letting him chase a ribbon she had charmed to fly in the air. They all took advantage of people able to use magic again, now back in the school grounds.
The carriages stopped, one at a time, and let the students off in front of the great oak front doors. Terry, Travis, Alia, and Natasha got out of their carriage when it pulled up to the doors. They went inside and upstairs to the common room. They had to wait for a prefect to come and tell them the new password: ultum virtus.
They all climbed into the common room through the space the owl statue left, and Terry, Travis, and Alia found their favorite spot by the fireside. They hadn't sat here together for a month, and it felt like old times.
Terry had returned to his home away from home, and he wasn't going to leave it any time soon.