Meet the Maker
It was October 28th and Hogwarts was preparing for Halloween. The old students were talking about last year's celebration where they invited the new band "Alohamora" to play in the great hall. The headmistress believed that Holidays were for celebration, even if some of the celebration was painful for her. This year's celebration was going to be a surprise, and all the gossip was about what they thought that the surprise was going to be.
"I heard there is going to be a casual ball." Whispered a third year to Aila at breakfast.
"Really?" whispered Aila, "I heard that they were going to have a ghost party."
"No." said Hilary who was sitting down next to Aila, "I heard that they were going to bring in different dark, trained, creature for us to see. It's Halloween."
Then Lily scooted closer, "I heard we were all going to carve ten foot pumpkins! Then light them and have another 'Alohamora' concert."
There were many more rumors. Each person had heard a different story. Aila loved the mystery of it. She loved mysteries, even if they were not big 'who done it' s. She was putting together a costume, yes it was dorky, but she had heard there might be a costume party, and she wanted to be prepared. She was dressing up as a cat. Hilary thought she was being insane, but Lily thought that she was being smart and decided that she herself needed a costume and she made a costume of these things called 'death eaters'. It is cool, a long cloak and a mask that hid her face. She said that Death Eaters were followers of an evil and powerful wizard who her father killed before him and aunt Ginny got married.
Lily was one of the most hyperactive people you could ever meet. She is almost always bouncing off the walls. In order to sleep she had to take a calming potion, and normally only fifth years and seventh years that are taking their OWLs use that. The head of the House was very worried what she got sorted into Gryffindor. When she was getting sorted she was bouncing up and down from excitement and then accidentally bounced off of the stool causing the hat to fly off of her head while telling the entire Hall that she was now a Gryffindor. The best thing about Lily was that she has no shame. When she fell off the chair instead of blushing she stood up and put her hands up in the air like she had just landed an Olympic Gymnastics routine.
Professor Nitwit, that was seriously his name, was telling everyone in charms that we would find out the surprise at dinner on Thursday night. The halls were buzzing with more and more rumors of what the big surprise would be.
The next day was the same, until Thursday night. Everyone had just finished eating. Professor McGonagall came forward to her Headmistress Podium. "Attention!" she called, immediately everyone was silent and hanging on her every word, "Attention! I know there has been much gossip about what your Halloween surprise will be. And I am certain that none of you are correct. There will be no dangerous creatures roaming the corridors, no Vampires, and definitely no ghost party. No your treat is a bit safer then that." There were some scattered groans across the hall, but none from either of the twins. "No. Your surprise lies behind those doors." She pointed to the entry doors of the Great Hall. "Enter." She called out in a loud clear voice.
All the light in the hall was put out and all you could see was a line of candles carried by dark cloaked people. It was two lines, one beside the other, when they lines reached the front the separated and they went around the perimeter of the room stopping on each side of the double doors. When the line stopped moving there were dark cloaked people surrounding the tables. "This is your surprise." Said Professor McGonagall. "De-cloak yourselves."
All of the people blew out their candles and threw off their cloaks. There were screams all around the room. But they weren't screams of fear. No, they were screams of joy. They were all adults. A few of them were familiar. Especially one. A man who was tall, with red hair, a long nose covered in freckles. These people were their parents. "You will have no classes tomorrow and you and your parents will all go to Hogsmede to find Halloween costumes. There will be some in every store, I have made sure of it. Then later that night will be a costume ball. The parents have agreed to let the girls dance with guys; so don't worry about your parents interfering. The band playing will not be Alohamora. I decided to choose a band for the parents enjoyment." There were groans from all of the students, "O shut up you haven't even heard me." Said Professor McGonagall who looked appalled at her terminology and put her hand on her heart, "Forgive me. But he band I have chosen are 'The Weird Sisters'. And if you don't know who they are ask your parents, whom you may go and greet your parents now."
Hilary and Aila both jumped up and ran in separate directions. Aila ran and jumped into her father's arms. "Missed you too." He said grinning. She laughed and buried her head in his shirt. She had no idea how much she would miss the smell of him. He smelled like cinnamon sticks and butterbeer, oh and firewiskey. She inhaled the scent of his shirt and grinned. "Do you want to meet Hilary?" she asked brightly.
"Do I really have a choice?" he asked grabbing her hand.
Aila made a thoughtful face, "No, I guess not." She pulled him to the other side of the room where Hilary was reuniting with a bushy haired woman. "It looks like my mum is here too!" said Aila feigning excitement, she still was a bit angry with her mother for what she said about her father.
"I guess she is." He said nervously.
"Let's go meet her." Aila was looking at Hermione Granger with apprehension. Hilary was talking animatedly with her mother about something or another, and Aila didn't care about what. She just looked at her mother. 'I look nothing like her.' She thought as she approached the woman.
Her mother glanced up and saw Aila. They looked each other in the eye before Aila darted her eyes to her father, who was looking at Hermione Granger with complete adoration, as though someone had suddenly turned on a light. His face was somewhat illuminated. Hermione on the other hand was making a futile attempt at ignoring her father completely.
Hilary turned around and saw her. Unlike Aila, who was suddenly interested with a spot on the great hall's floor as opposed to her mother, Hilary ran and hugged her father like she had known him all her life. And if that wasn't enough she yelled, "I missed you like crazy!"
"I missed you too." Said Ron, who was obviously a bit confused. "Glad to see you… again."
"That's right!" said Hilary, "You were the one who broke my nose!" she smiled thought, as if it were a fond memory she thought upon and laughed about often.
Aila looked at her father who was smiling at Hilary in a way he had only smiled at her before. It was the father smile he had saved for Aila. Only Aila. Her insides flared up as she saw her father smile so fondly at Hilary. He had found the dream daughter. Outgoing, funny, and soon he would learn about her love for Quidditch. Wonderful.
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Hermione couldn't stop looking at Aila, who was staring at Ron with a hurt look in her eyes. Her heart went out to the girl. She had never thought about what it would be like for the girls to see their parents have room for someone else. Hermione wanted to run up and hold her daughter.
"Aila." She said quietly. "I am sorry about what I said."
Aila looked at Hermione with tears in her eyes. "You still meant it. You would not have said it if you had not meant it. I am not stupid. According to Dad I got your brains, and it appears that you are supposed to be smart."
Hermione frowned at Aila who was glaring at Hermione, "This is not how I pictured first meeting you." She sighed, "and I know it is my own fault. But I was still a bit angry at your father and…"
"Eleven years." Said Aila coolly, "that is a long time to hold a grudge."
"I know."
"What could he have possibly done to make you leave him, separate from him, and then insult one of your daughters before you even met her."
Hemrione smiled, "I had met you before. I birthed you. That is why I am considered your mother."
"Ha ha." She said angrily, "Very witty."
"I know you probably wont forgive me anytime soon, but can you at least let me spend time with you? Maybe after you get to know me, then you will see that it did not mean what you thought it did."
"We'll see."
"Just give me time to prove myself." Whispered Hermione, pointedly not looking at Ron, she could feel his eyes searching for hers.
"One day."
"One day." Agreed Hermione.
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Hilary thought Aila was being ridiculous. Mamma had apologized, and she meant it. Hilary knew that her mother never apologized unless she truly meant it. Otherwise it would be hollow, worthless, and pointless, and Mamma hated doing things that would waster her time.
She talked about this to Aila, but all that she said in return was, "Well, I don't know your mother, and she said something very hurtful, and forced me to wait for an apology. I am going to force her to wait for my forgiveness, if I forgive her at all."
Hilary didn't believe a word of what her sister said, of course Aila would forgive Mamma, it was ridiculous to think she wouldn't!
Or was it? She could be more like her mother. She could hold this grudge for eleven years and not even break a sweat. Hilary looked at Aila, who was working on her homework, was she so much like her mother that she would risk her first and maybe last chance to get to know her mother. It would also ruin Hilary's chances of getting to know her father. This sucked.
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Ron couldn't believe how much Aila was like Hermione. He had never seen her hold grudges, for even a second. Normally she never needed a reason to hold a grudge, everyone was so nice to her. She grew up in a bubble. Maybe Hermione was right; she grew up in a dysfunctional home. He was positive that Hermione had let Hilary experience the world; He on the other hand had sheltered Aila, like she would break if she ever got near someone slightly rude.
Hilary was so different from Aila. She was very extraverted, while Aila would have sat in a corner with a book her whole life and feel like she missed nothing. Was he like that? He wasn't sure, but he was sure about one thing: tomorrow could not come soon enough.
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Aila woke up bright and early on Friday morning. She wanted to take a long bath before the long day ahead. She was positive that although she was eleven, she was going to get gray hairs from all of her stress. She had told Hilary this before she went to bed, and she laughed in Aila's face. That was a very rude thing to do in Aila's opinion.
After she had gotten into the bath and began to relax she thought about her mother. No, she wasn't as mad as she was before after seeing Her mother face to face, but she wanted to make her mother wait. There were two reasons for this decision: Mum had made her wait about a month before asking for forgiveness, letting it sink in and making her further question how much her mother loved her. And Second, She wasn't sure if she was ready to have a full time mother. She was used to women like her grandmother and her aunts being around and being motherly, but having one mother figure seemed like something other girls needed. But she was afraid to admit one of the main reasons she didn't want to forgive her mother.
Dad was her dad. He already had a daughter. He did not need perfect Quidditch playing Hilary. He only needed one girl to love. He needed Aila, and ONLY Aila.
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The newly found family met in the great hall for breakfast. The house elves went all out for this breakfast. There were twenty more choices for breakfast then normal and all the portions were doubled. "They must have been working all night!" breathed Hermione after seeing the large quantities of food spread across the table.
"Still working on spew?" asked Ron sitting down at the table and scooping large quantities of eggs onto his plate.
Hermione glared at him, "if you are talking about S.P.E.W. then the answer is no. But I still think that the unfair slavery of Elves in repulsive. They need more rights, and better working conditions."
"Too bad the elves never cooperate with your plans to save the elves."
"That is why I stopped you moron. There are better ways to spend my time and better ways to use my grades." She took a couple slices of toast and some cantaloupe. "But lets not fight. Not today."
"I agree." Said Hilary walking up and sitting by her father. "I don't want you two to ruin my first chance to get to know my father."
Hermione saw Ron smile at Hilary with a proud expression on his face. Her insides flared up. She quickly ate her breakfast and stood up. "I am going to visit the Library. I have some work to do."
"But you don't even got to Hogwarts even more! You don't have homework or anything! What could you possibly need to do?" asked Ron after struggling to swallow the massive amount of food in his mouth.
She turned around, "Unlike when we were students at Hogwarts we are not friends and you have no business in what I am going to be doing." She turned from him and strode out of the Hall.
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Hilary thought her mother was acting very odd. She never spoke like that to anyone. "What did you do?" she asked her father, who was staring at the double doors with a mystified expression.
"Wha…huh?"
"What did you do to make her walk out like that?"
He looked at Hilary and smiled, "I can honestly tell you I have no idea. What I did could have been easily forgiven, even by her standards. I don't know why she is acting like this."
Hilary looked at her bacon on her plate. "I don't get it. She is acting so stupid."
Ron grinned, "that's funny, because she was the smartest witch in out year. She was amazing."
"Kinda like Aila."
"Yes," Ron looked at Hilary and smiled really big, "kinda like Aila."
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